Children of The Moon
by jessicaX2plussarah
Summary: Edward leaves Bella in NM as Jacob tries to piece back together the now broken Bella. As time goes on Jake and Bellas feeling escalade but will they both be able to handle consequences of their actions and move on or will Bella remain forever broken
1. Chapter 1

**Preface**

**RPOV:**

"Hey! That tickles. Phil, stop it. The phone is ringing." I got up running for the phone.

"Hello," said a husky voice.

"May I ask who's calling?"

"Jacob Black." Hmm…Wasn't that Bella's friend? Why was he calling me?

"Oh, yes. Bella's told me all about you."

"Um…," he hesitated.

"Um... Bella's not doing so well right now and I think she needs your help."

Oh my God, what's wrong? No. Calm yourself Renee, she probably just got hurt, you know how Bella is. I made one last feeble attempt to get my nerves under control before as I waited for Jacob to announce his reason for calling.

**Chapter 1 **

**(This story takes place after Edward leaves Bella in the woods behind her house in New Moon. Disclaimer: We do not own anything. All of the characters are Stephenie Meyer's.)**

**JPOV:** " Bella!" Where is she? What did that leech do with her?

I had been searching through the forest for over an hour when I heard something shifting. I walked closer until I heard sobbing. I started running toward the noise coming from behind the bushes.

" Bella! Bella is that you? I pushed the bushes away. There she was just lying there trembling and repeating over and over again:

" He's gone."

He left her. Alone in the woods, that leech left her bleeding on the inside. I picked her up very carefully and started walking towards the others.

" I found her," I yelled.

Charlie was the first to run over, Sam following.

" Bella, Bella," Charlie kept repeating.

" Why won't she answer me? What did he do to her!?" he yelled, panicking.

"He left her," I answered through my clenched teeth.

" She's in shock, she'll be fine," Sam said, trying to soothe him.

" Give her to me," Charlie demanded.

I gave her to him. She was still trembling and murmuring to herself.

" Bella, Bells. I'm going to take you home now sweetie," said Charlie who has making vain efforts to calm her down.

"Thank you, so much Jake, for bringing her back."

" No problem," I said, secretly wishing I wasn't the one who found her that way.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**JPOV: **The door bell rang.

"Dad! Bella's here. We'll be in the garage."

It's been a few months since I found her, since that low life bloodsucker left her. We've been hanging out lately, and she seems happier. But I can still see the sadness behind her smile. She'll get over him, I'm helping her and sometimes when she laughs she looks as if nothing ever happened. The strange thing is the more we hang out the more I want to be with her.

I ran to the door. "Hey, Bella"

"Hey Jake."

"Do you want to work on the bikes today?"

"Sure. That sounds cool."

We went to the garage and started working on the bikes. (More like me working and Bella handing me the tools.) She seemed to laugh more today then ever. It seemed... natural.

**BPOV:** It's been a few months since he left me bleeding on the inside, but the bleeding has subsided into a healing, but still painful wound. Jake and I have been hanging out a lot lately and with him, the pain goes away. I often compare him to having my own personal sunshine. But, there are also times when I still flinch at the sound of _his_ name or when I think about how _he _didn't care when I pleaded with _him_ not to leave me. Hanging out with Jake and the wolf pack made me realize what it felt like to hang out again, to laugh again. I was contemplating this as I sat on my bed. I soon got bored and opened up Wuthering Heights and started reading.

"Uh… Bella?" Charlie yelled from the stairs.

"Yeah, Dad."

"Someone's at the door for you"

Hmm…That's weird. Jake wasn't supposed to come today. I ran down the stairs to the door, and it was Jake.

"Hey Jake, were we supposed to hang out today?"

"No, but I figured I'd surprise you."

"So, what do you want to do?"

"I was thinking about taking you cliff diving."

"Jake, isn't that kind of a dangerous?"

"Bella, come on. Don't you want to have fun? I'm sure Charlie trusts me. Don't you?"

"Um… I don't know Jake."

"Please."

Oh crap! He's pulling the guilt trap again. I dropped my head and sighed,

"Ok."

"Yes! Come on."

"Dad, I'm going out with Jake."

"Ok. Don't stay out too late," He yelled from the living room.

"I won't," I yelled as Jake practically dragged me out of the door.

In La Push we met the rest of the pack: Quil, Paul, Sam, Jared, and Embry. Apparently, word got

out about our outing. As we approached the cliff my knees started shaking violently. When we

reached the top, I hesitated and stepped back. Jake grabbed me and guided me forward.

"Come on Bella, you promised."

"Ok, Jake. I'm just a little nervous."

"It'll be fine," he assured me.

And with that, Sam was the first to jump. He backed up a bit and started running toward the cliff.

With one leap he was out of our sight. I ran toward the cliff to look if he'd made it. Of course

he twisted gracefully into a swan dive the moment before impact. Quil, Paul, Jared, and Embry

went next, all landing in the same fashion. It didn't take me long to realize they were just there to show off, as they had clearly done it so many times before. Watching them didn't help my anxiety at all. My turn was next, but I didn't have the courage yet.

"Jake, why don't you go first?"

"No way, I want to watch you go down. I have to make sure everything is all right."

"Okay," I said, feeling somewhat reassured.

I took a deep breath, stepped back and ran toward the cliff. At the tip I leapt, suddenly not feeling the ground beneath me. For a moment I felt like I was floating and it was peaceful and invigorating. But when I opened my eyes reality kicked in and my heart nearly stopped dead in my chest. I let out a blood curdling scream, hoping it would be a warning to Jacob to watch out for me. I hit the water hard and the surf was really choppy. My body went into panic mode as I wildly thrashed at the water. My legs were giving out and darkness was coloring the corners of my vision. I stopped thrashing and let the water consume me. Water filled my lungs, burning my throat.

"Bella! Bella!"

Who was that calling me? I felt a tug on my arm someone was pulling me out of the water. Suddenly, I felt something hard and cold beneath me then something pushing against my chest repeatedly. I heard murmuring around me. I forced my eyelids open with great effort, and saw that Jake was over me stroking my cold pasty face.

"Jake," I barely choked out in a whisper.

" Shh...Bella, everything's alright. I'm so sorry; I should have never made you come."

"S'ok," I murmured and closed my eyes.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**BPOV: **I woke up in my bed a little confused about what happened. I stumbled my way down the stairs and into the kitchen. Charlie was sitting down. He looked up from the newspaper in his hand.

"You're awake. You slept for about 7 hours Bells. Jake's really worried about you."

"Can I go to La Push today to thank him for saving my life?"

"You don't have to. He's coming over for dinner today."

"Hmm…What did you have in mind for dinner?"

"Um... I don't know. I was hoping you'd be awake by then."

"Great," I groaned and started digging through the refrigerator for the ingredients for some lasagna. I gathered all the ingredients for the lasagna and walked toward the table. It would seem me of all people would know the strength of my own arms. Consequently I wobbled and tripped over something (my feet) and everything, including myself, hit the ground. Charlie came rushing in.

"What happened?"

"I tripped. Sorry."

"It's okay, I'm just glad you're okay. I guess we'll go out tonight. They'll be here in an hour, so I suggest you start getting ready."

"Okay, I'll get ready as soon as I clean this all up;" I said looking at the mess I made.

"No, I'll clean it up," Charlie replied with a grin.

"Thanks, Dad." I ran up the stairs to take a shower.

In about an hour Jake and Billy came. I ran to answer the door.

"Hey Billy, Jake," I greeted as I pulled open the door.

"Hi, Bella." Billy said as Jacob rolled him in.

Charlie came to Billy.

"Hey, Billy, how about going out for dinner tonight? Bella had a little mishap with dinner."

Billy looked at me with a sly grin and replied, "Say no more."

They all laughed at my expense. I pouted and grunted until they all stopped laughing and chuckled their apologies. We went to Luke's Diner and afterwards Billy suggested me and Jake go see a movie.

"Dad, can I go?

"Sure. Have fun kids."

Jake and I walked to the movie theatre. Luckily for me, I only stumbled twice, just mildly embarrassing myself. We went to go see Monsters vs. Aliens. As we were walking back to my house, I noticed Jake was a little uneasy.

"Jake, what's wrong?"

"Um... Bella I need to tell you something."

"What's up?" I asked, hoping it was nothing bad.

" Bella, I…I was hoping that we could um... well, we've been hanging out for a few months, and I was wondering if ... you liked me more than a friend."

He stared down at his feet, shuffling them back and forth. Me and Jake... together. The only person I've ever been with was _him. _Could I take another heart ache? Could I sustain another internal injury? I opened my mouth to speak, when he interjected.

"Bella, I know you're probably not ready for a relationship yet, but maybe in time you could see me as more than a friend."

"Jacob, I do like you, and I'm probably not ready for a relationship… but I suppose I'm willing to try." I said surprising myself and him.

We stopped walking. I looked down, fearing his reaction. He lifted my chin and stared into my eyes, curious of their expression. He wrapped his arms around me. Slowly his head inclined and he leaned forward to kiss me. I hesitated.

"Bella, don't you want to?"

"Yes…" I said, as if it were sin to admit it.

He hugged me closer and inclined his head again. We both leaned forward until our lips touched awkwardly. With a slow, easy motion our lips moved together in sync. I pulled away surprised at myself for the joy I felt.

"Oh… sorry, did I do something wrong?"

"No. It was nice."

He smiled with what seemed to be relief.

"I guess I can give you this now," he said, beginning to reach around to his pocket.

"Aw, Jake you didn't have to buy me anything."

He chuckled and said, "I didn't, I made it."

And with that, he slid out of his pocket, what appeared to be a carved wolf head as a charm for a chain bracelet. I was stunned at the apparent craftsmanship Jacob must possess to create such a charm.

"Wow. It's beautiful Jake. I love it, thank you."

I gave him a hug and a quick kiss on the cheek.

He blushed.

"No problem, I'm glad you like it."

We walked back to my house. Jake seemed to freeze.

"Jake, what's wrong?"

"I thought they left!" he barked.

I looked into the living room. Sitting there was Alice, but she seemed more shocked to see me than I her.

"I have to go," Jacob said through clenched teeth and stalked out the house.

"Alice! What are you doing here? "I asked surprised, running over to her. I gave her a hug, but she seemed unresponsive she spoke robotically.

"I _was _here to console Charlie."

"Alice, what are you talking about?" I asked confused.

"Bella, I thought you were dead."

"Alice, who told you that?" Still in shock, she stared blankly into space.

"I saw you jump off the cliff. Bella, I thought you were going suicidal."

"I was cliff diving with Jacob and the pack. Alice calm down, I'm fine."

"But Bella, Rosalie told Edward you killed yourself," she cried hysterically.

My legs buckled beneath me and I sunk to the floor, only asking," Where is he?"

God, please don't say he went to _them. _

She hesitated.

"Tell me!" I screamed, breaking out into a sob.

"Bella, he's… he's... dead. He killed himself."


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

**BPOV:**

I curled into a ball, wildly shaking. He killed himself...why?

"Why, " I sobbed. What made him do that?

"Bella. He left you only because he thought his life wasn't good for you. He loved you still when he left. When he heard that you died, I guess he couldn't handle it. Rosalie called me and told me the only thing he said was that he couldn't live without you and he left."

That was it. I couldn't take much more.

"I…. I have to go."

I got up, unsteadily, and ran toward the door. I needed to see Jake. I needed him to take the pain away. I got in my car, leaving Alice in my living room. I sped to La Push, ignoring the stop lights. I stumbled out of the truck, tripping over my feet several times before reaching his door. I banged on the door frantically.

"Jake!" I yelled.

"Jake! Are you there?" Maybe he wasn't back yet.

The door was opened by a very sleepy-looking Jacob.

"Hey. What's up Bella," he yawned.

He took a second look at my face. I started to sob and stumbled into his arms. He stroked my hair trying to calm me down. I couldn't control my sobbing.

"Bella, shh... Bella, it's ok...What's wrong?"

"He's... he's…" I couldn't finish.

Saying it out loud meant I believed it, and I wouldn't believe it. I couldn't.

"He's…What? Bella, please tell me."

"He's..."

"Dead," I finished, finally confessing it to myself and to Jacob.

"Bella…oh, Bella. I'm so sorry. Come on in."

He gently guided me through the hallway and to the living room. I sat down trembling, and he grabbed a blanket off of the back of the couch for me. I lie down on the couch in Jacob's arms, and let the tears flow freely as I let my thoughts wander. In a way I envied _him._ At least now he was free from everything; it was so much harder to live. I tried with no success to calm myself, and eventually cried myself into a restless slumber.

**JPOV:**

It was heart-wrenching to see Bella like this. As she was inconsolable, I held her until she had cried herself to sleep. I got up, gently placing Bella's head on a pillow, and ran to the kitchen to call Charlie. This was even worse than when Edward had left her a few months ago. Looking at her, even while she was asleep, she had a pained expression on that beautiful face. After three rings, Charlie picked up the phone.

"Hello?" He said anxiously.

"Hey, Charlie. It's Jake. Bella's here with me."

"Is she alright? It's time like these when I wish her mother was here."

An idea clicked in my head.

"Um… Charlie, let me call you back."

"Okay," he sighed deeply.

"Bye."

I quietly hung up the phone and tiptoed back into the living room. I tapped Bella on the arm. She wouldn't budge.

"Bella," I whispered. She didn't answer. I nudged her again.

"Bella."

She woke up confused; she looked around as if she didn't know where she was. She looked at my face and blinked.

"Jake."

"Shh... Bella. I'm sorry to wake you, but could you tell me your mom's number?"

"Um...It's 904-561-2908," she replied sleepily.

"Thanks. Please, try and get some more sleep, okay?"

"Ok," she said and put her head back down.

I hadn't made it out of the room when I heard Bella burst into tears again. I cursed myself for waking her up in the first place, but walked back to the living room. I sat on the floor by her head and held her hand until she had fallen asleep again. I then gently removed her hand from mine and went into the kitchen to call Renee.

**RPOV:**

"Hey! That tickles. Phil, stop it. The phone is ringing." I got up running for the phone.

"Hello," said a husky voice.

"May I ask who's calling?"

"Jacob Black," the husky voice replied.

Hmm…Wasn't that Bella's friend? Why was he calling me?

"Oh, yes. Bella's told me all about you."

"Um…," he hesitated.

"Um... Bella's not doing so well right now, and I think she needs your help."

Oh my God, what's wrong? No. Calm yourself Renee, she probably just got hurt, you know how Bella is.

"What's wrong?" I said, keeping my voice steady.

"Bella's going through a tough time right now and I think she should come live with you for a while. You know, get away from this place."

"What happened?" Why didn't she tell me? Is it so bad that she couldn't even tell her own mother?

"Edward, her ex-boyfriend, he...he… committed suicide."

"Oh, God. That's horrible!"

Oh poor Bella. I know how much she felt for him. I remembered that when she had that accident and I visited her in the hospital, those two were inseparable. She must be a wreck.

"I was thinking that maybe sometime away from this place will do her some good," Jacob said as he interrupted my reverie.

"I suppose you're right...Does Charlie know about your plan?"

"Not yet. I was hoping you'd tell him. I don't want it to seem like bringing her to Forks in the first place is the cause for all of her pain. No need for Charlie to feel like it's his fault she's like this now."

"Okay, I'll call him. I don't know what I'm going to say, but I'll figure something out. Thanks for calling me. Tell Bella I'm so sorry about Edward, and that I love her dearly."

"I will. Thanks again, bye."

"Bye."

I went to the living room to check on her. She laid there, her head face first into the cushions. I sat on the floor and stared at her, stroking her tangled hair.

**CPOV (Charlie): **

Damn it! Bella was just starting to get back to her old self again. This is just going to crush her. Just then, the phone rang. Hopefully, it was Jake with some good news.

I picked up the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hey Charlie."

Crap. It was Renee. She must want to talk to Bella. Should I tell her about Edward? I decided that I wouldn't. Not now, at least.

"Hi, Renee. Bella's not here, but when she comes back, I'll let her know that you called."

"Charlie, I wanted to talk to you about Bella."

"What about Bella?"

"Charlie, I heard about Edward, and I think it would be best if Bella stayed with me for awhile."

Stay there, in Jacksonville?

"Why? I can take care of her."

"Charlie, you never could see when something was wrong."

"What does that mean?" I said getting a little irritated

"Don't get mad. I just think me and Bella need woman-to-woman bonding time. I miss her."

I sighed. She was right, and she could help Bella with the situation more than I could.

"Okay," I replied as I gave in.

"Okay. I'll call back and talk to Bella about it."

"Okay, bye."

"Bye."

I hung up the phone. Maybe she should've stayed with her mother I thought. She might have been saved from this heartache.

**BPOV:** I woke up and stretched, feeling each and every one of my stiff muscles. I felt my face; it was puffy from crying the night before. It was then that it hit me again. He's gone forever, I thought. I started to sob again. Something moved on the ground. I looked down it was Jake. He had stayed with me. He yawned, rubbed his eyes and smiled.

"Hey Bella. Feeling better?"

"Yeah, I guess." I looked down and started to bite my lip absent-mindedly.

"Bella, it'll be fine. You should go home and let Charlie know that you're okay."

"Okay, can I go to the bathroom?"

"Yeah, sure."

I wiggled out of the blanket, slowly getting up, testing the muscles in my legs. I wobbled and stumbled on top of Jake. He looked up at me with a hesitant grin on his face. I got up awkwardly and went to the bathroom. I cleaned myself up and then thanked Jake for letting me stay at his house. I made a move to leave when Jake tugged on my arm.

"Bella, I'll take you home."

"It's ok, Jake. I think the drive will do me some good. But, thanks anyway."

"Okay. Be careful, though."

"Thanks. I will."

I stepped out the door. Jacob tugged on my arm again. I turned around.

"Yeah, Jake?"

"Um…"

He quickly leaned forward and kissed me softly. Whoa. I definitely wasn't expecting that, but I have to say, it wasn't unwelcome, either.

"Um... I hope you feel better." He looked down, blushing and obviously embarrassed.

I really couldn't think of anything to say, so I had to settle with a shy smile and a quick goodbye as I quickly walked into the rain, heading towards my truck.

"Bye, Bella." He quickly went into the house and closed the door.

When I got home, Charlie was waiting for me in the kitchen.

"Hey Bells. Alice told me about Edward."

I winced at the sound of his name.

"I'm so sorry Bells. How are you feeling?"

I couldn't help but wonder why Charlie was encouraging this conversation. He usually wasn't one to talk to about emotions.

"I've been better, but Jake made me feel better," I offered not really in the mood to talk.

Charlie stared at me for a moment.

"Bells…Me and your mom talked, and we think it's best to send you home."

"Home? I am home," I said, just a bit confused.

"No, Bells. I mean with Renee in Jacksonville. We think it'd be best for you if you lived with her for awhile."

Well, I guess I _did _miss my mom…

"Um… Charlie. I have to think about it."

And with that, I walked past him and went upstairs to my room. I sighed and lay down on my bed, staring up at the ceiling.

For the last almost 2 years Forks had been my home, and _he _had been my world. But those things were gone. At school my friends had split in two groups, the before _him_ group and after _him_ group. The before him group consisted of Ben, Angela, and Mike, and the after him group consisted of Jessica and Lauren. And _he_ was gone. What did I have left attaching me to Forks?

I got up off of my bed, heading towards my door. I was going to tell my dad that I would go to Jacksonville when it hit me suddenly... Jake. How could I leave Jake? He had been so nice to me these past months and recently we've been something of a couple. How could I tell him I was leaving? I contemplated all of this as I rushed down the stairs to tell him the news. I dialed his number and waited as the phone rung.

"Hello?" he answered in an anxious voice.

"Hey, Jake. Um…" I hesitated. "Jake, I have to tell you something."

"Bella, is this about Jacksonville?"

How did he know about Jacksonville?

"Jake, how did you-"

"Bella-" he interjected.

"Bella, I'm the one who called your mom and suggested you to go."

When I heard this, I couldn't help but feel a tiny wave of rejection.

"But Jake, why did you-"

"Bella," he cut in again.

"This place isn't good for you. You need to get away for awhile. Look what it's done to you. Look at yourself. Your smile has faded, your eyes have darkened. You're not the old Bella anymore."

I suddenly remembered my reflection in the mirror from earlier. At first, I thought I looked the same, and then I had taken a second look. There were bags under my eyes; my complexion was a sick, pasty white. He was right. This place was slowly, but surely killing me. I had only one objection.

"Jake…what about us?"

He hesitated for a moment before answering.

"I- I understand that you have to go. Bella, I just want you to know that even though you'll be miles and miles away, I'll always be here for you. I… I… I love you." he said, his voice gritty with emotion.

I desperately needed a getaway, but now I had a new reason to stay. Jacob. That's why it seemed so impossible to tell him goodbye, because I was in love with him too. I was in love with Jacob, but it still wasn't enough to change anything. I still had to leave.

"Jake, I love you too," I whispered, and my voice broke twice.

Over the phone, I could hear his breathing become uneven.

"Really? You do?" He asked doubtfully.

"Yes, of course. I'll admit, my love for you in the beginning was strictly brother-type love, but now, it seems to be something more."

I felt relieved to finally admit this out loud, both to myself and Jacob.

"Bella, I promise I'll always love you."

"Please… Don't promise me anything."

If he promised me that he'd love me always, and then left me, I didn't how I would ever bear it. After all, how many times can a heart be broken and still be expected to keep beating?

"Bella, I will never leave you. I know you have to go to Jacksonville, but I'll remain faithful to you."

"Jake...I still love him." I said, ruining the moment.

"I know, Bells. I can see it in your eyes every time you think about him. But, that's okay. I still love you, and maybe when you return from Jacksonville, you will have moved on enough for there to be room for me also in your heart. But yes, Bella… I realize that a part of you will always love him. That's okay…as long as you can love me too."

I didn't deserve Jacob. He had helped me, when no one else could. He had befriended me, no questions asked. But now I was leaving him, and he tells me he loves me, and I tell him I'm still in love with my dead ex- boyfriend. I would deserve all the pain I would feel when I had to leave.

"Jake, I'm sorry I should've never told you that. I don't deserve you," I said, starting to sob.

"Bella, I understand. Bella, I love you and I will do anything for you. If that means waiting until you're ready to come back from Jacksonville then so be it."

At these words, my heart inflated to the point where it felt like it just might crack through my ribs. I wanted to hug him, to kiss him, tell him how much I'd miss him.

"Jake, can I see you tomorrow?"

"Of course."

He sounded as excited as I was.

"Okay. I have to go Jake. I need to call my mom and tell her I'm going to Jacksonville."

"Okay… Um, I love you Bella."

"I love you too, Jake."

And with that, he hung up. As I hung the phone back on the hook, I could feel my stomach knot up with the anticipation of seeing Jacob one last time.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

**  
**  
I turned into Jake's driveway. Earlier, me and my mom talked about it, and determined that I was going to leave for Jacksonville the next day. I struggled with it all night. How was Jake really going to take this? I really hated leaving him like this, but it had to be done. I walked up to Jake's door and rang the door bell. My finger was barely off of the button when the door opened. It was Jake.

"Hey Jake," I greeted him with a small smile.

"Hey Bella." he smiled widely.

"Come in," he suggested and moved aside to let me in.

I walked into the house and followed Jake into the living room where we sat on the couch. I looked down, shuffling my feet nervously.

"Bella, what's wrong?" he asked, concerned.

"Um… Jake. Me and my mom talked yesterday and decided that I'm leaving tomorrow."

"Oh." he said, looking down.

Hoping to find an upside for Jacob, I said, "But I've already said my goodbye's to Charlie and packed, so we can spend the whole day together."

"That's great, I guess." he replied half heartedly.

"Jake… come on. This is our last day together. Be happy for me, please."

"Okay. I can do that." He surrendered into a smile.

"So, where do you want to go? Today it's your choice."

"Um… I think I'm going to take you to my secret lair of sorts." he said with a playful grin and a wink.

"Where's that," I asked, just a bit confused. I'd sworn I knew all of Jake's hideouts.

"Just wait and see," he said with a chuckle as he gently pulled a strand of hair back from my face. I couldn't help but blush deeply and look away. Jacob softly laughed again and said, "Give me a sec to get ready."

"Okay," I replied.

He sprang up from the couch and ran into his room. He returned with a blanket, a pair of hiking boots, and two flashlights in his hands.

"Jake, can you please tell me where we're going?" I begged.

"Nope. Put these boots on. They were Rachael's and I think that they'll fit." He threw the boots on the floor toward me.

I put them on, and it was a little snug but I could manage.

I was just fitting the second boot onto my right foot when I realized something that should've been obvious. I sighed and said," I guess the boots mean there's walking involved."

"Yep," Jacob replied somewhat smugly.

I groaned.

"Come on, Bella .It'll be fun, I promise." he said trying to cheer me up.

"Okay." I said, although not totally convinced.

He put on his jacket, grabbed my hand, and we headed out the door.

"Can we take your truck for the first part of the journey?" he asked.

"Sure."

I started to make my way around to the driver's side when he caught me by the hand and pulled me close. I could feel his intense body heat radiate through my jacket as he leaned in close to whisper in my ear: "How 'bout I drive?"

I looked up into his dark eyes and nodded my consent as we pulled apart.

I went to the passenger's side and climbed in. After a quick glance in my direction, Jake started the engine and we were off. On the way up I kept looking out the window trying to figure out where we were going. Jake noticed.

"Bella quit stressing and trying to guess where we're going. You're never going to guess."

I sighed and looked forward. The drive up there was completely silent, but comfortably so. I looked over and saw Jake smiling. He pulled into this deserted lot of land surrounded by forest.

"Okay. This is where we start," he said, pulling the key out of the ignition. He got out the car and came around to open my door. I got out, the air smelled of moss and the forest was silent. A pang of fear caused my heartbeat to quicken.

"Bella, your heart's beating so fast. Don't worry, everything will be alright. Don't be such a wuss," he added jokingly and took my hand. We started walking together towards the forest.

As we walked in the forest we talked about all of our memories of each other from the first time we met through now. Jake teased me about all the times I fell, confessing that he had counted 57 times. I playfully punched him for teasing me. We walked for 3 miles until we came to an old abandoned club house built up in a tree.

"This is it," he said as he let go of my hand and ran toward the tree, climbing into the clubhouse.

"Jake!" I yelled. "What is this place?"

"I use to come here when I was little. My dad and I built it together right before my mother died. I come here sometimes to think about her. And now, I'm sharing it with you. Come on up."

I walked up to the tree trunk and grabbed hold of the rope ladder. I couldn't seem to get a good grip on the rope, and my weak arms certainly weren't helping as I struggled to climb up. Jake sighed and rolled his eyes. He bent forward and grabbed my hands, pulling me straight up through the hole in the floor of the tree house.

"Thanks, Jake."

"No problem," he said with a grin. I looked out the window; it was getting dark outside.

After a minute of thought, Jacob grumbled, "Oh man! I forgot the blanket and the flashlight in the car. I'll be back in a few minutes." he said as he kissed me on my forehead and jumped out of the clubhouse, racing towards the forest.

I looked around the club house, and in it, there were a couple of dusty stools, a crafts table and an old mattress set up on blocks of wood. I looked more closely at the table and I saw that in the corner, there was a dusty picture frame. I picked it up and wiped the frame with my shirt. It was a picture of his mother. I could just barely remember her from when I visited Forks when I was little. She had dark hair and eyes just like Jake.

"She was beautiful," a husky voice said from directly behind me. I spun around. My heart rate, which had spiked with the surprise slowed as I realized that it was just Jake with a flashlight and blanket in his arms.

"I'm sorry Jake, for going through your things." I put the picture back in its original place.

"S'ok. I haven't looked at that picture in years."

He picked it back up and stared at it for a few moments before setting it back down.

"So, what do you think? I know it's not much."

"It's amazing, Jake. It really is."

"Thanks."

He hopped on the mattress and looked up and out through the sky light in the ceiling.

"When I was little, my dad and I used to come up here all the time to watch the stars at night."

I went over to the mattress, sat down, and scooted right up next to Jacob. Jake grabbed the blanket from the table and put it across both of us as we laid back to look at the stars. It was silent as we looked at the stars. Jake suddenly took my hand in his.

"Bella, I love you."

I rolled over to look at him. He was staring at me with nothing but complete and utter love in his eyes.

"I love you too, Jake." As I said this, I realized how natural it felt to say this to him. Nothing was artificial about our relationship. I truly did love him, and this fact gave me hope that I could, and _did _love someone else besides Edward. Even as I thought this now, I marveled over how thinking his name didn't hurt so much any more. Still, it hurt, as it always will with undeniable pain, but it was at least getting better.

He sat up and stared down at me with wonder and love still in his eyes. I lifted myself up to face him. He took my face in his hands and kissed me lightly on the lips. Then he kissed me again, but this times with a new intense edge to it. It felt so different to kiss Jake because with Jake I didn't have to hold back. I returned the kiss eagerly, and slowly, his arms encircled me. Still caught in a tight embrace we laid back on the mattress….


	6. Chapter 6

**  
****Chapter 6**

**JPOV:**I woke up on the old ratty mattress and looked over next to me. Bella, who was laying there breathing quietly, looked different than before. Even while she was sleeping, her face seemed more beautiful, if that was at all possible. Last night I felt it, what Billy told me about. I must've imprinted on her. Not that I hadn't loved Bella before, but things had changed. I knew that it'd be damn near impossible to go back to being just friends. It would cause me physical pain to leave her now. Despite my revelation, I couldn't tell her that. I couldn't tell her how hard it would be to see her leave because she would doubt her decision to leave, and the "vacation" of sorts would ultimately do her some good. Bella yawned, stretched, and looked over at me with a brilliant smile on her face.

"Good morning." she said sleepily.

"Good morning, Bells."

"Um, Bella I was thinking last night and…" I hesitated.

"Jake, you can tell me." She placed her hand on mine reassuringly.

"I hope you don't think I brought you here just to…"

A look of understanding dawned upon her face when she realized where I was heading with this.

"No. Of course I don't think that. I know you better than that. I mean, it was totally spur of the moment. I don't know how it happened, but I'm glad it did."

I smiled widely with relief. She felt the same way I did. I gave her a big bear hug. It lasted about 3 seconds when she started to beat on my back.

"Uh... Jake. can't breathe," she choked out.

"Sorry," I said letting go of her.

"S'ok," she replied with a warm grin. It was silent for a moment. Then something seemed to click in her head, and she jumped up with a look of panic on her face.

"Oh man! I told Charlie I'd be back home at eleven last night. He's gonna kill me."

She scrambled around trying to find her clothes. She quickly put her clothes and shoes on. I got up quickly, put my clothes on, and grabbed the flashlight and blanket. Bella was about to climb down the tree when I grabbed her to hug her before we left out. She laid her head on my shoulder.

"I love you." she said.

"Love you more." I teased.

I let her go, but just barely. She climbed down the tree, and I followed close behind.

"Bella, we'll get back faster if you ride on my back."

"Ok," she replied.

I bent down and she hopped on my back. I ran as fast as I could, and in no time we were at the car. Bella hopped off my back and ran to the car. I got in the drivers seat and sped away. In about half an hour, I pulled into her driveway. Charlie was waiting on the porch. We both got out, looking nervously at each other. We approached the porch.

"Bella, your plane leaves in an hour. What the hell have you been up to?" he demanded.

"Nothing much," she whispered as she blushed a deep red and looked down, worrying her lip.

Charlie looked from me to Bella, and back again as suspicion took over.

"Bella, where were you last night," he yelled, getting angry.

"With Jake," she whispered.

He looked at me, his eyes seething with an unexpected hatred.

"What were you doing with my daughter," he demanded.

"Nothing bad, just hanging out at my old club house and watching the stars. We fell asleep. I'm so sorry Charlie," I said looking down at the ground.

He turned to Bella.

"Bella, don't lie to me. What were you doing with Jacob last night?"

She looked down, a bit ashamed and embarrassed. Charlie saw her reaction and exploded. He stomped toward me and grabbed me by my collar. If it were a different situation, I might've laughed because Charlie was barely able to reach my collar. This, however, was no time for laughing.

"Don't you ever come near my daughter ever again!" he barked into my face.

Bella ducked under Charlie's arms, coming to stand between us.

"Dad you can't do that. I won't stop seeing Jake. I love him."

That only seemed to make things worse. Charlie's face was turning purple.

"I can't stop you, huh? Well as long as you live under my roof you _will_ follow my rules. If you don't like it, you can _stay _in Jacksonville!" he yelled.

The next thing he said surprised us both.

"It's a good thing you're off to live with Renee for a while. Maybe she can teach you to keep your legs shut!"

Bella gasped, horrified. Tears welled up in those big, chocolate-colored eyes, and she started to cry. It took all my might not to punch him in the face for saying that to her. What happened last night was love, not lust. She ran into the house, up the stairs, and I followed. She was scrambling around the room getting her suitcases together, wiping her tears. She picked up a suitcase and almost fell over from the weight.

"Bella, I'll get the luggage for you." I took the suitcase from her, along with the other ones and sped down the stairs. She followed slowly, looking at the house one last time. I walked out the door and put the suitcases in the truck. She walked out the door, still sobbing. We got into the car, leaving Charlie in the doorway with anger plain in his features. She laid her head on the window, looking out.

"Bella, don't worry. Charlie was just mad. I'm sure he didn't mean any of those things he said. He was just angry," I said trying to reassure her and myself. I pulled out the driveway, starting toward the airport. It was silent, and after awhile, Bella stopped sobbing. She just sat there looking out the window.

"Bella, do you think it was a mistake?" I asked quietly. She turned to look at me.

"Jake, I love you. What we did was out of the love we have for each other. I don't think it was a mistake."

She placed her hand over mine on the gear shift and smiled tearfully.

"I'm going to miss you Jake," she whispered.

I pulled over to the side of the road.

"Jake, why did you stop?" she asked, confused.

I took her face in my hands and kissed her softly. I left go of her face and wrapped my arms around her, hugging her close to me.

"I love you so much, Bella." I murmured into her hair.

She whispered back, "I love you too Jake."

We held each other for a moment. After a while we let go of each other just staring into each other's eyes. I kissed her again, this time with more intensity. I never wanted that moment to end, but she had a plane to catch. I let go of her reluctantly and started up the truck again. The rest of the drive was silent, both of us consumed with our thoughts. We arrived at the airport. I sighed and got out of the truck and walked around to open the door for Bella. I grabbed her suitcases and we headed towards the airport.

I waited as Bella got her bags checked in and walked with her to the boarding gate. Her plane was leaving in 5 minutes. I couldn't help but stroke her face one more time.

"I love you Bella." I said as I wrapped my arms around her.

"I'm gonna miss you Jake," she whispered sadly.

I held on tighter to her, never wanting to let go. A voice on the intercom came on.

_"This is the last call for flight 815 going to Jacksonville, Florida."_

She sighed and let go, but I couldn't let go of her. I loved her, I could never let her go.

"Jake, I have to go…" I let her go painfully.

She kissed me softly once more and walked toward the boarding connector. She looked back and smiled, but the smile did not reach her eyes. She waved sadly at me, and I waved back. She boarded the plane, and the flight attendant closed the boarding door.

I left the airport and took the truck back to Bella's house. I didn't go in to talk to Charlie. I hadn't forgiven him yet for saying that to her. If only he could understand how much I loved her or how much I thought of her or how much I would miss her while she was gone. I went around to the side of Bella's house and looked longingly at her window. Maybe this separation would be easier if I could at least feel close to her, I thought to myself as I leaped on the tree near her window. I reached across and opened her window. It squeaked a little, but opened. I climbed through the window and into her room, inhaling her scent immediately. I wondered her room, looking at her CD's, flipping through her books. I knew I was invading her privacy, but I wanted to feel close to her. I heard a noise coming from the hallway. I quickly tip-toed to the window and leaped out onto the ground. I sprinted home through the forest.

Billy was waiting for me in the kitchen when I walked through the door. He slowly rolled his wheelchair towards me.

"Charlie called me today. He sounded pretty damn upset."

"Dad, when I took Bella to the club house I had no idea we would..."

"I know, I know. I trust you Jake. But maybe you should talk to Charlie, he's pretty mad at you."

"Okay, okay," I groaned and picked up the phone.

"I'll give you some privacy." He rolled out the kitchen with an unfathomable expression on his face.

"Hello?" Charlie answered warily.

"Hello, Charlie…. Um… I called to say that…I'm sorry, but I'm not sorry," I said, making sure that there was defiance in my voice.

"You gotta understand, Charlie. I love Bella, and I'm sorry it had to happen that way, but I'm not sorry that it happened."

The other end was silent.

"Charlie… Charlie, hello? Are you still there?"

Finally, a response came.

"I miss her. The house is so empty without her," he said quietly. "She was my little girl and now she's gone because she can't seem to get over _him_."

A low growl escaped from my chest. I had to make sure Charlie knew that I would be a better choice for Bella.

"I would never take her away from you, Charlie."

"I know, I know. I trust you, but, can you imagine what it felt like to have it confirmed that my little girl really isn't so little? It's just moving too quickly, you know? I only just got her back and now it seems she's ready to leave again."

I could tell that he was suffering just like I was. Then, an idea clicked in my head.

"Uh… Charlie, I'll have to call you back."

"Okay," he grumbled and hung up.

I dialed Renee's number now, for the second time in a few days.

**BPOV:**

I couldn't have been more relieved when I felt the plane finally start to descend. The 6 hour plane ride to Jacksonville was excruciating to say the least. Despite my growing exhaustion, I was completely wide awake for all 6 hours. It was impossible to sleep with my mind racing. I had so many things to think about: Jacob and our recent experience together; Charlie, and how I just didn't know how I could ever talk to him. On top of this, I had to admit I was a little anxious and excited to see my mom. I had no idea how I was going to explain the whole Jacob "situation" to her. And so I sat contemplating the present and the past, while the plane taxied forward to the gate where my future awaited.

When I got my bags, I walked out the doors of the airport and looked around for my mom's car, but it wasn't there. I was about to walk back into the airport when I heard someone calling my name.

"Isabella!"

Only one person that I know of still called me Isabella. I turned around, hoping that my instincts were wrong. Of course, they weren't, and Phil stood behind me, waving.

"Hey, Phil," I said uncomfortably. He seemed to be a nice guy, but there was always something strange about him that made me uneasy…

**  
Author's Note:**

We want to thank everybody for the awesome reviews. BUT… (Yes, there's a catch) for Chapter 7 to be posted, we're going to need at least 5 more reviews. Thanks again for the awesome support.


	7. Chapter 7

CHAPTER 7

BPOV:

"Where's my mom?" I said looking past him, confused.

"She had an emergency, so she couldn't come. She told me to tell you that she's sorry."

"Okay," I said dryly as I went to put my suitcase in the trunk. I sat in the back seat, not wanting to be close to him. He got in the car and pulled away from the curb.

"So… how was Forks?" he asked, trying to make conversation.

"Okay." I offered, trying very hard not to make conversation.

The rest of the car ride was silent, but a couple of times I caught him looking at me strangely. We arrived at what I guess was my home for the next few months. Renee came running out of the house. I ran to her and gave her a hug.

"Mom! I thought you had an emergency?" I said confused, but happy to see her.

"I did," she replied then she turned towards the house and yelled,"She's here! Come out!"

Jake ran out the door smiling.

"How… what?" My heart filled my chest and blocked my throat so that I couldn't speak.

"I missed you," he said simply and ran over and gave me a hug.

"I missed you too." I said excitedly. He let me go to give me some air.

"How'd you get here so quickly?" I asked.

"I took the Concord." he said turning his back toward me and crossing his fingers.

"Oh… Okay."

We walked into the house, and Renee showed me to my room. My room was small, empty, and the walls were red. The color put a painful reminder in my head of why I was here. I was trying to ignore the growing twisting pain in my stomach when someone placed their hands on my shoulders. I spun around. It was Phil. I cringed under his touch and moved away. He ignored my reaction.

"This is your new home. How do you like it?"

" S'okay," I said uncomfortably.

" Bella, I just came to tell you that me and Renee are going out for a while. You know, to give you some time alone with Jake." Phil left the room, but not before he gave me a wink with a sly grin on his face. Jake ran into my room and kissed me on the cheek.

" Did ya miss me?" he said his voice teasing.

I rolled my eyes, but help telling the truth. " Yes."

He put his arms around me.

" Bella," he said, serious now.

" The reason why I came here was because…" he paused.

" Tell me, did something wrong happen?" I asked, panic sinking into my stomach.

" No, well yes, um… kinda." he paused again.

" Tell me." I demanded.

" Bella, that night we… um… you know. I… I sorta, kinda, imprinted on you."

" Oh."

" Bella, please don't feel like you're now obligated to be with Me." he said quietly.

" Jake, I felt it too, but I couldn't put a name to what I felt. I guess I was denying it because of...." I trailed off, not wanting to say his name, especially not in this room.

" Edward." he finished.

" Yeah." I said looking down.

He lifted my chin and kissed me intensely for a few, wonderful moments. I broke away taking a second to catch my breath. I walked over to my new bed and lay down, it felt lumpy. Jake lay down next to me and propped himself up on an elbow. He just laid there staring at me curiously.

" What?" I asked.

" Well, I'm trying to see if I remember loving you any less than I do now," He said, stroking my face gently. He peered more closely at me and frowned.

" You look tired," he said, rubbing the bags under my eyes with his finger.

" I didn't get any sleep on the plane," I said suddenly feeling the exhaustion I hadn't felt before. I yawned involuntarily.

" Maybe you should get some sleep."

" I'm not sleepy," I said.

" Go to sleep, Bella." He was stroking my face again.

" Jake, I want to stay up," I whined childishly

He rolled his eyes and sighed, "Okay."

I sat up trying to keep myself awake

" I talked to Charlie," he whispered. I flinched with painful memories of what happened earlier that day.

" What did he say?"

" He misses you, Bella. He didn't mean what he said at all. I talked to him about what happened and he was only mad because he felt like he was losing you. First, with you going to Jacksonville, and then with me keeping you out all night, he felt that things were out of his control. You should talk to him."

" I dunno Jake." I wasn't ready to forgive Charlie yet.

" Please, Bella. He feels really bad about it." Jake looked at me with those puppy dogs eyes and I almost instantly melted.

" Okay." I said, with a resigned sigh.

" I'll get the phone." He hopped up from my bed and disappeared into the hallway. He returned a few seconds later, phone in hand. He sat back down, dialing the number for me.

" Hello?" I heard a muffled voice say on the other line.

" Hey Charlie, it's Jake. Bella wants to speak to you." He handed the phone quickly to me.

" Hello." I said sternly

" Uh… Hey Bells." He said nervously. The phone was silent for a few, awkward moments.

" Look, Bells, I'm sorry for what I said. I didn't mean it Bells. I was just mad, and you know how I get when I'm mad. I say stupid things I don't mean. I was worried about you and when you came home, I exploded. I hope you can forgive me Bells."

I figured I couldn't really hold a grudge against my dad for loving me.

"I forgive you dad, but you just have to trust me."

" I know, Bella. I was hoping we could keep in touch while you're in Jacksonville." he suggested hopefully.

" I'd like that." I hated the idea of not talking to Charlie on at least a semi-regular basis.

" Okay." he said happily.

Jake grabbed the phone from me and talked with Charlie for a few moments.

" Bye," he said when the conversation was over and went to hang up the phone. He came back and lay back on the bed, staring at the ceiling.

" I'm only here for 2 weeks, unfortunately. My school principle knows about the werewolf imprint thing, but there's only so much school you can miss because you miss your girlfriend." Jake finished with a sad sigh.

" So how was the plane ride?" he asked trying to change the subject.

" Long," I said, making him laugh.

We talked for hours, until Renee and Phil came back. Renee came into my room.

Seizing the opportunity, I said,"Uh… Jake I need to talk to my mom for a minute."

" Okay." He got up and left the room.

Renee sat down on the bed and gave me hug.

" Welcome home," she said smiling.

" Mom, I have to tell you something." I said nervously.

" What's wrong?" she asked, the smile leaving her face.

" Um… well… Before we left Forks, me and Jake, we um…."

" You what?" she asked confused. Then it clicked in her head.

" Oh." she said, finally getting it.

" Oh." she said again, but this time, her face was turning white.

" Mom, I swear we didn't plan it. It just sorta happened."

" When?" she asked. I could tell by the strain in her face she was having a hard time keeping calm.

" Yesterday."

" Where?"

" In his club house in the woods."

" Does your Dad know?"

" Yes."

" I know he didn't take it well."

" He kind of kicked me out and told Jake never to see me again ."

" Bella, trust me I know Charlie he didn't mean it." By this time her face was fully composed again, but I knew she hadn't accepted it yet. She'd only filed it away in her mind for later evaluation.

" I know, I talked to him, and we worked everything out."

" So, Bella… is he a good kisser?" That was my mom for ya.

" Eww, mom. I'm not going to tell you."

" Come on, please."

" Yes." I finally admitted, blushing.

She laughed gaily. Her smile always brightened up a room, even in this room. We talked through the night, both of us fighting our heavy eyelids. We both failed miserably and fell asleep.

I woke up and looked around the room. It looked so dreary. I got up, leaving Renee in my bed. I walked around the house. The kitchen wasn't like the one in Forks, it was more like my mom: fun, crazy, and definitely colorful. I looked into the living room, where Jake was asleep, snoring on the couch. I was admiring Jake's sleeping form when I heard foot steps behind me. I spun around to see that it was Phil, once again.

" How was your night?" he asked.

" Fine." I said and faked a yawn.

" I think I'll go back to sleep." I tiptoed quickly to my room. Renee was still sleeping with a peaceful look on her face. I slid back under the covers. When I heard steps coming from the hallway, I quickly closed my eyes. Someone came into my room, walked over to the bed, and sat down. I kept my eyes shut. A strong hand stroked my face slowly. I thought it was Jake, and was about to open my eyes when he spoke.

" You're more beautiful than before. Sleep my beauty, you'll be mine soon enough."

It was Phil! I tried not to squirm away from his touch.

He sat there for a few moments and then left. I rolled over to face mom and tapped her.

" Mom," I whispered to her. She didn't answer. I nudged her again, and she still wouldn't budge, so I pinched her.

"Ouch!" she said popping up.

" Shh…" I said.

" Mom, Phil came in and sat down and he said…well, he said some weird stuff."

" Bella, you were just dreaming. Just go back to sleep," she said, yawning.

" But Mom," I whispered. She groaned and went back to sleep.

I sighed and laid back. What did he mean by 'You'll be mine soon enough'? What did he want with me? I couldn't go back to sleep, so I kept thinking of how cold his touch felt on my face.

**Author's Note: First, we want to thank everyone for the great reviews. It's awesome that you all love the story. Second, for chapter 8 to be posted, we would really love to receive 100 reviews. If you could spread the word, that would be very much appreciated. One more thing, and then I'll shut up. Be on the look out for a new story that we will be posting eventually. It's not the sequel to this story, but it will be awesome nonetheless. To give you a general idea, Edward and Jacob switch places. So, in the beginning, Jake and Bella are together, but Jake imprints on someone else and leaves Bella. That's when Edward comes to her rescue. Thanks again for the great support!**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

The next two weeks with Jacob were better than I could've hoped for…almost. Jacob helped me emotionally with getting used to Jacksonville. He was always there to talk to when I needed him. We spent hours and hours together, simply talking and enjoying each other's company. The only downside was the terrible color of my new bedroom. The blood red walls were a constant reminder of _him_. Every night, I would drift to sleep with an image of my "would've been" family in my thoughts.

Soon after arriving, Renee took me on a grand tour of Jacksonville. I have to admit that it was pretty nice besides the hot weather and high humidity. One day, as Renee drove me past my soon-to-be new school, we caught a glimpse of the school's baseball team practicing on the back field and I was instantly reminded of Phil. I hadn't told anyone about the weird feelings Phil inspires within me, not even Jake, but I certainly hadn't forgotten. Most of the time, I considered myself lucky because Phil spent a lot of time at baseball practice. However, there were still those spilt seconds in time when he would wink at me, sending chills rushing down my spine.

The last day that Jacob would be staying in Jacksonville came sooner than I would have liked it to. That morning, after we both got dressed, we sat on my bed and thought about what should be the activity for the day. After many disagreements, I decided to just let Jake decide, since he was the person who would be leaving. After a moment's thought, his face took on a look of realization.

"Hey! Didn't Renee mention something about a nearby campground?" he asked me excitedly.

His face lit up as I replied, "Yes! Of course! Why couldn't we think of that before?"

We both simultaneously jump up from the bed and start packing for our camping trip. Twenty minutes later, we were loading up the car. We could barely contain our excitement as we practically jumped into the car. Jacob starts the car, but then pauses for a moment. He reaches over and grabs my hand to hold it in his. Nothing needs to be said; our glowing faces take care of all communication as he pulls out of the driveway and heads toward the campground.

----------

When we arrived, I quickly got out of the car. The grass felt soft under my feet and the air smelled fresh. Jacob quickly put up the tent; it was big enough to hold about 4 people. I went into the tent and sat down on a sleeping bag. Jacob came and sat next to me, holding my hand.

"It's going to be hard to leave you tomorrow." he said in hushed agony, looking down.

"It'll be hard for the both of us, but I'll call you everyday. I won't be here for long," I added hopefully.

"Bella, I thought you felt it too. I thought maybe that our bond had helped you get over him." he said with a hint of anger in his voice.

"It did... but I… I… still love him." As much as I knew it killed Jacob, I just couldn't let go.

"Bella, you have to move on! It's been almost a year since he left you, and don't forget that you love me too."

"I know, but he's still a part of me. Jake, he was my first love."

"Bella, but here I am. And here I will stay, loving you. It's like you don't have the will power to give him up, but you somehow have the will power to stay in Jacksonville without me." he said, the anger in his voice rising.

"Jake, that's not fair. I thought you understood."

"You're telling me about what's fair? Bella, for months I tried to help you get over that leech and all the while I'd been waiting until you could finally get over him so I could tell you how I felt. And yes, I _did_ understand, but after these last couple of weeks, I thought that things would change. You sure acted like you were over him, "he said, his voice continuing to rise.

He looked at me and just sighed.

"Bella, be honest. Did you feel anything that night at the club house?" he asked with agonizing sadness.

"Yes." I answered simply.

At my reply, an ugly look crossed his usually calm face. "Yes is all you can say!?"

" Jake, I did feel something that night, but I still need time to heal all my wounds, and I can't do that in Forks."

" Bella, you don't have to live in Forks. You can live in La Push with me." he said as if it solved all of my problems.

"Um... I don't know Jake. It doesn't seem as easy as it sounds."

"Fine!" he snapped with frustration and left the tent. I jumped to my feet and ran out of the tent after him. Jake was stalking towards the forest.

"Jake, wait!" I yelled after him.

He didn't respond, but continued walking toward the forest in a fast pace. It was getting dark, and I decided to go back into the tent and curl up in the sleeping bag. I cried because I couldn't let _him_ go, because I loved Jake too, and because even though _he_ was dead, I believed that somehow we'd be together. I finally cried myself to sleep.

When I woke up at midnight, I heard rustling outside the tent. I tried to stay still, but my curiosity was getting the better of me. I peeked outside the tent. Jake was sitting right there throwing twigs into the fire he'd made. I stepped slowly out of the tent, but he didn't turn around to acknowledge me. I went to sit next to him. It was quiet for a while, with both of us staring into the fire.

"Bella, don't take this the wring way, but, sometimes I wish I could hate you," he said, still staring intensely into the fire. A sharp pain stabbed into my heart when he said that, but remembering all of his valid arguments last night, I couldn't help but agree.

"I would hate me too, if I were you," I said looking down, clenching my teeth together to stop the tears from spilling over my eyelids.

"No you wouldn't... because if you were me, you'd see how hard it is to hate you and how it's even harder to love you," he said helplessly.

I put my arm around him and hugged him close to me.

"Why do you have to love him?" he asked bitterly.

"I don't know," I said, asking myself the same question.

"Then stop."

"It's just not that easy."

" I know what you mean…" He said more to himself than to me.

"It's late. You should go to bed," he said obviously wanting to be alone. So I sighed and went back into the tent.

JPOV: I just sat there, staring at the fire. I believed she loved me, but just not as much as I loved her. Now that I had admitted to imprinting on her, I could never leave her. Now and forever, I would be in love with this girl. I asked, to no one in particular why I had to imprint on Bella. It could've been anyone, but I imprinted on her. What did she still see in that leech, that blood sucker, that jerk who broke her so badly she can't recover? I hated him, plain and simple. He was the one thing, even now that he's dead, that was in the way of me and Bella. She can't have us both. It has to be either me, or him, and no in between. She would have to pick me or him. She could go on, leading an unhappy life, obsessing over a dead vampire or she could just let go and move on with me. She would make her choice tomorrow. And with that I got up and went into the tent, slid next to Bella and fell asleep.

The next morning I got up and left the tent. The sun had just risen. Today was the day that could either end or start my life. I went back into the tent and tapped Bella. She woke up, yawned and opened her eyes. She looked at me and smiled sadly. This couldn't wait; I simply had to know.

"Bella, I need to ask you something."

"What's wrong Jake?" she asked sleepily.

"Um… Bella, I was thinking yesterday and..." Be tough, I thought to myself. Don't look into those eyes. I looked down, and reminded myself of why I was doing this. But that didn't help; I needed anger, not motivation. Then I thought of him. My voice turned cold and hostile.

"Bella, you need to pick me or him."

"Jake what are you talking about?" she asked, confused by my sudden change of tone.

"Bella, I can't take your mixed emotions. Either you love him, or you love me. You can't have both, and I can't share you, Bella." I said boldly.

"Jake, give me sometime to think," she said hesitating.

"Some time to think!?" I exploded.

"Bella, he left you in the middle of the woods bleeding on the inside, your self esteem ruined, and his only explanation to you was that his world wasn't good for you and that you weren't good for him. Did he ever call to ask how were you doing? Was he ever there when you needed a shoulder to cry on? Bella, I was always there trying to help you, trying to make you happy again. I fell in love with you when I knew you didn't love me back, always hoping one day you would. And you did, or at least I thought you did. And now I'm standing here asking you to choose me or your dead ex-boyfriend and you tell me you have to think about it. I bet you he didn't have to think about it when he left you, and now he's dead!" I shouted in rage.

It only took me a second to realize and regret what I said.

"Jeez, I'm sorry Bella, I didn't mean it." I said sorrowfully.

"Sure sounded like you meant it." she said in a quiet whisper.

I took her and tried to pull her closer to me, but she wiggled out of my hold.

"Jake, I need to be alone, to think about things."

She left to go back into the tent.

By telling her that, I made her relive every painful memory of what happened. I could see it, the far off look returned to her eyes and sadness shadowed them. I went into the tent to be with her despite her wishes. I came in, and she looked up and quickly wiped the tears from her face.

"I'm really sorry, Bella." I said, sick of myself.

"I just need to be alone for a while, Jake."

"Okay" I sighed. I turned away from her and started to pack up our stuff.

I packed everything up except for the tent itself, as Bella was still in there. I peeked inside and saw her sleeping. I gently lifted her up and took her to the car. I realized that this might be the last time I would ever hold Bella in my arms. I hugged her closer to me and started walking toward the car. I balanced her in one arm as I opened the door. I put her in the car, buckled her seatbelt, and closed the door gently. I quickly and quietly disassembled the tent. I took one last look at the campsite and what could have been, and walked to the car to find that Bella was still asleep. I slung our crap into the backseat and got into the driver's seat. As I started the engine, my mind was racing with uncertainties. Would she ever talk to me again? Could I bear being away from her? Would she take pity on my suffering and forgive me? I tried, unsuccessfully to answer these questions on the way back to Renee's house.

When we got there, Bella was still asleep, and I didn't want to wake her. I was too afraid of what she might say. So, I gently picked her up and carried her into the house. Renee came running towards us with excitement etched in every line of her face, but I signaled to her to be quiet so she wouldn't wake Bella. I carried Bella to her room and put her down on the bed softly. I stared at her for a moment, trying to remember every angle and line of her face, so I could replay it over and over again in my mind when I left. I sighed and got up to leave the room. Renee was sitting in the kitchen with an impatient look on her face, and she looked relieved to see me.

"Hey Jake, how was the trip?" she asked eagerly.

"It was fine, but Bella doesn't want to talk to me, so I think I'll just leave."

"What happened?" she asked, concerned.

I almost didn't know what to say because I couldn't really tell her we had had a fight over her obsession with her dead vampire ex-boyfriend.

"We got into a fight," I stated simply.

"Oh." I could see she was trying her hardest not to pry.

So with that, I left and went to get what little I brought with me. I grabbed my shirt and shorts and left.


	9. Chapter 9

CHAPTER 9

BPOV: I woke up and looked around. I was in my room again and pinched myself to make sure it wasn't a dream. I got out of my bed and walked in the hallway. I heard loud noises coming from the kitchen, and I went to see what the source of the ruckus was. When I walked in, I saw Renee on the floor, rummaging through a cabinet, trying to find a pot.

"Hey, mom."

" Hey Bella, I'm making your favorite." Uh-oh. She only makes my favorite when something bad has happened.

"Mom, what happened?" I ask hesitantly.

"Um… Jake left last night," she said looking down, pretending to wipe something off her apron.

"Why?"

" Because he thought you were mad at him. He thought it was best that he just left."

"Oh." was all I could say. I walked back into my room. First _he _left me, and now Jake left me because of _him_. I did love Jake, but I needed more time. I couldn't call him until I was completely over it; until I could come home. I went to my bedroom and curled into a ball on my bed and sobbed. Someone came in, and I looked up. It was Phil. He came over to my bed and sat down. I scooted away from him, but he just pulled me back closer to him.

"Let me go." I said struggling to get out of his hold. He let me go and patted me on the back.

"Don't be sad Bella. Now that Jacob's out of the way, we can have the proper reunion without him always hogging you." He said this with a sort of bitter spite in his voice, but his smile never faltered. His words made me shiver all over.

"Are you cold?" he asked, pulling the blankets over me.

"No. I'm tired. So if you don't mind…." I hinted, annoyed.

"I'll let you sleep." he got up slowly as if wanting to prolong the moment. When he reached the door, he looked at me with an expression I couldn't understand.

"Be patient." he whispered so low to himself that I was surprised I caught it and left.

I would have to tell my mom about him when we were alone. She had to have seen at least once, the way Phil looked at me. I thought that maybe Renee would have that "mothers' intuition" thing, but she wasn't saying anything. I waited in my room until I heard Phil yell goodbye to my mom. I walked into the kitchen, where Renee was sitting at the table. I inhaled deeply and walked toward her.

"Hey." she said smiling.

"Um… mom, I need to tell you something." Oh goodness, how would I tell her, she looked so happy.

"What's up?"

" Mom, it's about Phil."

" What about Phil?"

" Mom, ever since I came here, Phil's been..."

" Been what, honey?"

"Well, he's been hitting on me."

It took a second to register in her mind, and once it did, her face fell.

"What did he do?"

I couldn't tell her everything. It would break her heart.

"Mom, sometimes he winks at me and stares at me."

She exhaled with relief.

"Oh Bella! He does that with everyone. He isn't trying to flirt with you. It's always worry, worry, worry with you," she said laughing.

But does he come into everyone's room and touch them, I wanted to ask her.

"Yeah, I guess I was just overreacting."

I guess I would just have to live through it.

"So do you want to get something to eat? As you can see, I kind of ruined your favorite," she said, changing the subject.

We ate at a local diner. I soon came to realize that I missed just hanging out with my mom. With her, everything that was bothering me disappeared. So regardless of my problem with Phil, I really enjoyed talking and gossiping with Renee.

When we got back home, I realized with an internal groan that Phil's car was in the driveway. We got out of the car and went inside. Phil was in the living room, sitting on the couch, watching the game.

"Hey girls," he greeted us with a warm smile.

"Hey Phil," we both said. Renee then went into their room.

"Bella, why don't you come sit next to me." he said, patting the spot next to him on the couch.

I hesitated. "Come on, I won't bite." I couldn't help but notice that his eyes said differently.

I sat next to him carefully. He put his arm around my shoulder and pulled me close to him.

"What do you want from me?" I whispered so Renee wouldn't hear.

"I want you always." he whispered back softly in my ear. I cringed away from him but he pulled me back to him.

"Don't fight it, it'll be easier." he whispered in a pathetic seductive voice.

"Get away from me." I said in a louder tone. He let go of me.

"Keep your voice down or you'll pay later. Oh, love, the last thing in the world I want to do is hurt you, but I know how easily you bruise." he said in a violent whisper.

"I'll tell my mom," I said in a somewhat threatening tone.

"No, you won't. Where would you go if you couldn't live here? From what Renee told me, you had a heard time keeping your legs crossed in Forks and Charlie kicked you out."

"She told you that?" I asked, astonished and feeling somewhat betrayed.

"She tells me everything, and I can tell her anything and she'll believe it."

" No she won't."

" Oh, she won't? Did you tell her the about the way I've been around you lately? I suppose you don't really have to answer because I know you have, but I want you to say it."

"Yes," I whispered helplessly.

"And did she believe you?"

I didn't answer.

"Exactly my point."

He got up and went into their room with a cocky smile on his face. I pulled my legs to my chest and cried. I needed to leave, but I knew that I had to stay.

----------

JPOV: I was trying to convince myself not to go back to Jacksonville and beg Bella for forgiveness, and I wasn't even home yet. I would be home in a few minutes, I realized as I was getting closer to the border. I was running when I heard voices, and I instinctively stopped to listen. They were speaking in hushed tones, but one of the voices sounded livid. I walked closer towards the voices to hear a bit better.

"Rosalie, what the hell did you tell him?" the angry voice said in a voice I recognized as Emmett's.

"Nothing. I told him exactly what Alice told me."

"Bull. Rose, what happened to your hand?"

"Nothing." Wow. Even from where I stood, I could hear the lie.

"Tell me what you did." Emmett's voice was now seething with what sounded like hate.

"I've told you, it's nothing."

" You'd better tell me, Rose," he threatened menacingly.

"Okay, fine. I...I…"

"Just spit it out already."

" I sort of flirted with him, and made obviously failed attempts to seduce him, but he still wanted Bella, so I told him she was dead."

" But Rose what about us?" he asked with hurt and anger.

"I was always in love with him," she spat.

"So that's why your hand is like that. He didn't want you, so you forced yourself on him. I know Edward, he fought back didn't he?"

" I don't understand why he wanted her, she's so plain and frail." she said bitterly.

I wanted to kill Rosalie. How dare she think Bella was plain, while it was so hard for me not to love her. I started shaking violently and tried to calm myself.

"Well now that he's gone, Emmett, will you take me back?" she asked sweetly.

"Hell no! Rose you cheated on me and basically killed Edward yourself."

"Hey! Alice told him too." she whined.

"Only because you'd already told him. And besides, you knew that he was going to commit suicide, and you didn't even try to stop him," said a high-pitched voice that I knew belonged to Alice.

"You knew about his plan, Rosalie?" Emmett exclaimed, appalled.

"Of course I knew, but he didn't want me, and he couldn't have her. What did he have to live for?" It was hard to mistake the icy coldness with which Rosalie spoke.

"You tramp!!" Emmett exploded.

"You'll pay," threatened Alice in a deadly voice.

"What are you going to do? The damage is done. Edward's dead," sneered Rosalie.

"I'll kill you, you heartless whore!" Emmett yelled.

I couldn't take it anymore. I couldn't just stand here. She was the reason Bella had to leave me. I walked into the clearing in which they stood, revealing myself. They instantly crouched, ready for anything. They recognized me, but remained crouched over.

"I apologize, but I overheard your conversation. I'd like to help." I said, glaring at Rosalie. They slowly eased out of their crouching positions.

All of the Cullens were there: Rosalie, Emmett, Alice, Jasper, Carlisle, and Esme. Emmett smiled devilishly at me while Rosalie scowled at me. We turned toward her; the Cullens were crouched again. I started to quiver, and let myself assume my animal form. Jasper was the first to pounce, ripping both of her arms off in two swift motions. Alice followed, detaching her torso from the rest of her body. As her legs tried to scurry away, I grabbed them in my mouth and ripped them apart, breaking them in half. Emmett was the last to go, and he ripped off her head. Meanwhile, Carlisle and Esme had started the fire and we all tossed parts of her into the fire. Emmett watched her burn with a sad satisfaction in his eyes. When I changed back to my human form, I realized that I didn't have any clothes on. I quickly covered my… area. Alice couldn't stop giggling.

"Jake, why don't you come to our house? I'm sure we can find clothes that'll fit you," Carlisle said, laughing.

I followed them back to their house in my wolf form. As we approached the house, I morphed into a human again. They showed me into a bathroom upstairs, and Emmett gave me some clothes. They were a little small, but I was in no situation to complain.

I left the bathroom and looked around the house. I couldn't help but notice that it reeked of them. Despite the smell, I found it very hard to resent them here. Everything was so open and warm. I could see why Bella fell in with love them. The house was very inviting. I felt a hand on my shoulder, and I turned around to see Carlisle.

"Hey, sorry. I was just looking around, you have a nice home."

"Thank you, Jacob. Follow me into the kitchen. I think Esme has whipped up something to eat."

I followed him downstairs into the kitchen. It looked like it had never been used, yet there was a plate of spaghetti on table.

"I made spaghetti for you." Esme said excitedly.

Jasper quickly caught my attention behind Esme's back. He warned me with a glance at the plate of spaghetti not to eat it. I almost laughed, but composed myself enough to politely refuse it.

"No thank you, I'm not really all that hungry. Sorry."

"It's okay."

The conversation fell into an awkward silence.

"So where were you coming from?" Esme asked.

"Jacksonville," I replied. I figured that I'd tell them the rest if they asked, but there was no need to throw out every last detail right away.

"What were you doing there?" she asked, curious.

"I was visiting Bella." They all looked down.

"How is she?" Carlisle finally asked.

"She's fine I guess. She just needed to get away from Forks for awhile."

Alice shrunk into the corner, and Jasper quickly went to her side to comfort her.

"I figured that her mom can help her better than I can," I sighed.

I looked around at their faces, and they all looked concerned and sad. Until that moment, I had always thought that Bella was mourning the loss of a love, but now, I could see that she lost not only a love, but she lost a whole family.

"The games on," Emmett said, trying to change the subject. Miraculously, it worked and we all went into the living room to watch the game.

While watching the game, I realized that Emmett was funny, Jasper was surprisingly sarcastic, Alice was, of course, bubbly, Esme reminded me of my mom, and Carlisle reminded me of Sam. I guessed that the leeches weren't as vile as I thought they were. And besides, after awhile, their sickly sweet smell becomes bearable. Afterwards, I ran home with the idea of convincing the pack of destroying the treaty.

----------

BPOV: Beep, Beep, Beep.

I swatted at the annoying alarm clock Phil got me, but realized I would have to get up to turn it off. Phil burst into my room, flipped the lights on, and left, but not before giving me a sly smile. I groaned and walked to the bathroom. Today was the day I had to travel to a world called "New Kid at High School in the Middle of the Semester". I wouldn't be the chief of police's daughter; therefore people wouldn't have to like me. I put on some jeans and a blue sweatshirt and headed to the kitchen. Phil was sitting down reading a newspaper.

"Where's my mom?" I asked coldly.

"She's in her room," he said smiling, ignoring my tone.

I turned around and left. My mom was putting on her earrings when I walked into her room.

"Mom, come on. I'm gonna be late."

"Hold on. I'm coming." she said. She rushed around her room, gathering things she had forgotten, and together, we left the house and got into the car.

I leaned my head against the cold window and sighed. I'd been dreading this day since I arrived in Jacksonville.

My mom must've picked up on my anxiety." Bella, it'll be fine. I'm sure you'll like it."

"Oh yeah. It's gonna be great," I replied sarcastically.

"Bella, you can't really avoid going to school."

" I know."

" Oh, and by the way, Phil's gonna pick you up today."

I just can't catch a break, can I? "Why?"

"I don't get off until five o'clock this evening."

" Ugh..."

"Bella, what's wrong with you? Why don't you like Phil?"

" Because…" I was about to tell her when I looked down at my sweater and was reminded of its history.

"Ugh, never mind." We drove into the parking lot, and I could see the kids looking at me through the window with impolite interest. Renee dropped me off in front of the school. I took a deep breath and walked into the school. I immediately realized that Renee was right; the school was really nice. The lockers were all painted the same color and the windows actually looked clean. I walked into the main office, and a middle aged woman looked up from the desk and smiled.

"Hello, what can I do for you?"

"Um... My name is Bella Swan. I'm new here, and I need my schedule."

She gave me my schedule and I left to go to my first class, room 106, English. The school was twice as big as the one in Forks, and in minutes, I was lost. Deciding to ask for help, I walked up timidly to a blonde-haired boy.

"Um… Hi. Do you know where room 106 is?"

" Oh yeah, that's my next class. I'll walk you," he said with a brilliant smile.

He seemed nice enough so far, so I figured, why not tell him my name? He'd find out in class anyway. "Thanks. My name's Bella."

"Aiden."

The bell rang. He started walking, and I followed.

"So where'd you come from?"

"Washington."

"Seattle?"

"Forks."

He stopped and turned around.

"Where?"

"Forks. It's a small town," I admitted with a chuckle.

" Oh." he said, and continued walking

" So how'd you end up here?"

" I moved in with my mom."

" Couldn't take your dad?" he guessed.

"Something like that." He stopped in front of the door, marked 106.

"Well, here it is. Good luck." he said, beginning to walk away.

"Hey, where are you going?" I yelled down the hallway.

"To class!" he yelled back.

"I thought you said this was your class."

" I lied." he said turning the corner, smiling.

I opened the door, and all eyes seemed to turn to me. My teacher came up to me and shook my hand.

"Hi, I'm Mr. Sanford. Welcome to University High."

"Hi, I'm Bella Swan."

" Your seat is right back there." He pointed to the back of the classroom. I made my way to the back, ignoring the stares and whispering of my new classmates. Mr. Sanford started the lesson. At first, I tried to ignore the knots in my stomach, but then my vision got fuzzy.

"Miss Swan, are you alright?"

That was the last thing I heard then everything went black.

---

" Miss Swan," said a distant, sweet voice.

I blinked and looked around. I noticed that I was in a different room.

"Where am I?"

" You're in the nurse's office, honey."

" What happened?" My lack of memory was really starting to freak me out.

"You fainted, dear."

I sat up. "Do you know what's wrong with me?"

"Well, how long have you been feeling like this?"

" Well, I didn't _feel _like I was going to faint, but I guess I've been feeling uneasy since this morning."

" Are you on your period?"

Oh crap! How could I have forgotten? "No," I replied slowly as I counted backwards in my head.

"I was supposed to start last week." Oh God.

"Don't panic, dear. Maybe you're just late this month."

"I'm never late!" I felt like I was losing my mind.

"Calm down, I have a pregnancy test here if you want to take it."

"Yes," was all I could say. I couldn't believe we had been so careless. Darn that spur-of-the moment crap.

She reached into a bin and pulled one out and gave it to me. I went into the bathroom and did what I needed to do. I came back and sat on the bed, staring at it. Slowly, a tiny plus appeared.

"Oh my God." I felt like I was about to faint again, but I pushed that feeling away so I could think this through.

"I have to go," I said to the nurse who almost said something more, but thought better of it. I walked out the door, without a backward glance, and into the hallway.

The bell rang, and students flooded the hallway. I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around, and to my surprise, it was Aiden.

"Hey." he said, smiling.

"Hi." I said quietly.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Aiden was nice, but there was no way I was going to tell him what I just found out. Heck,_ I_ still didn't want to believe it. But I realized that he could help maybe.... "Do you have a car?" I asked him.

"Yeah, why?"

" I was wondering if maybe you could take me home. I understand if you don't want to skip school."

"No, it's okay, I'll take you. It's lunch, anyways."

We walked out of the front door of the school and headed toward his car. It was a silver Volvo. Something inside me wouldn't allow me to suffer from the similarity of his car and a certain other, so I didn't pay it much mind. We got into his car, and I quickly fastened my seat belt.

"I hope I'm not being nosy, but why the sudden leave?" he asked as he pulled out of the parking lot.

"I wasn't feeling well, and I just needed to leave."

" I guess one day in this school _would _make you sick," he said with a chuckle.

I laughed. In a way, he reminded me of Jake. We'd just met, but conversation with him seemed almost effortless.

"Ah, that's the smile I wanted to see. So, where do you live?"

" Do you know where the Lancaster Condominiums are?"

"Yep."

" That's where I live."

" Good to know," he said, smiling. For a moment, it was silent.

"I feel like we're gonna be good friends," he said with a smile.

"Yeah, it seems that way." And for me, it really did.

I sat back and looked out the window. The rest of the time I thought about Jake and our…baby. I could no longer stay here, it seemed. Obviously, Jake and I had some things to sort out and a child to raise together. Ever since I had seen the little plus slowly materialize on the pregnancy test, my perspective had changed. Jake and I were going to be parents now. Edward was dead and was never coming back. Jake was there waiting patiently for me to finally get over him and come back home. I realized how much Jake must have suffered being away from me without a goodbye. I was going to leave Jacksonville, but first, I had to call Jake.

Before I knew it, Aiden was pulling into my complex. He drove through the serpentine streets before coming to mine.

"Is this your house?" He pointed to the second one.

"Yes," I replied as he pulled into the driveway.

"Can I call you later to see if you're alright?"

"Yeah, my number is 904-561-908." I bit my lip. I knew that wouldn't be my phone number for long. "Just in case that one doesn't work call, 734-268-276. And thanks for taking me home." I got out the car, and he rolled down the window.

"No problem. I didn't want to go to health anyway," he said, pulling out the driveway.

"Hey! I thought you said it was lunch," I yelled.

"I lied," he yelled back from the street. I smiled in response. He smiled back and drove off.

I walked into the house to find Phil watching T.V in the living room.

"Hey, what are you doing back from school so early?"

" I wasn't feeling well," I offered and went to my room and shut the door.

I grabbed the phone off my bed and dialed Jake's number.

"Hello?" Thank goodness, it was Jake.

"Hey, Jake. It's me, Bella."

"Bella! I'm so sorry about what I said. I didn't mean it. God, I miss you so much."

"Jake, I miss you too. And don't apologize for what you said. You were just telling me the truth, but I didn't want to hear it. But all that's changed. I've been thinking and I'm moving back to Forks."

"Wow Bells. That's great!"

His enthusiasm was hard to mistake, and I was worried about how he would take the news. I figured it was best just to come out and say it. "Jake, that's not it. I have something else to tell you."

" What's that?"

" Jake I…um. I'm… pregnant." I finally got the words out in a soft whisper.

"Oh," he said, his voice a little shaky. The other end was silent after that.

"Jake?" I was starting to worry he'd hung up/

"We're going to have a baby?" he said, sounding like he was asking himself more than he was me.

"Yes."

" How did this happen? Well, I know how it happened, but… Oh man! We're gonna have a baby."

"I know." I was thrilled at how well he was taking this, but there was something I needed him to know. "Jake?"

"Yeah? What's wrong?"

"I'm scared." And I truly was. It was so unexpected and so over my head. I didn't know the first thing about being a mother.

"Bella, I am too. But you've got to believe that it'll be alright and that we can get through this. I'm sure everyone will be supportive. You'll be a great mom, trust me."

I took comfort in his words and replied, "Thanks, Jacob. I know you're going to make a great dad too."

" Bella, I want to be with you every second of the way. When are you coming back?"

"I'll try to get a flight as soon as I can. I promise."

"Okay."

Just then, my door opened. I turned around to see that it was Phil.

"Jake, I'll have to call you back, okay?"

"Okay." he said sighing.

" Bye. I love you."

"Love you more." he said, and hung up.

"What do you want?" I asked with little patience.

"What I've waited so patiently to have for sometime now. You, love."


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10 BPOV: I backed into the wall. Phil was slowly closing in on me. " Leave me alone," I said, scared witless. Still, he walked forward relentlessly. " Now that you've come back to me, I'll never leavr you alone. That's a promise." I grabbed the phone in my hand." I'll call the police," I threatened sheepishly. He snatched the phone from me and threw it against the wall, shattering it. He took my wrists and pinned them to the wall. I tried to fight back, but he only gripped my wrists tighter. " Don't make it harder than it has to be," He whispered and then he crashed his lips brutally hard down on mine. He gathered both of my hands in one of his and started pulling me towards my bed. That's when I kicked him where I knew it would cause him the most pain, and ran towards the door. I could hear Phil coming after me, and I was almost to the door when I tripped and fell. Phil grabbed my hair and pulled me up. I screamed. " Quiet! Do you see what you make me do? I don't want to hurt you. I love you, but you give me no choice." I pulled my leg forward and rammed it back as hard as I could, again, into his private area. He immediately collapsed onto the floor. I ran towards the basement door and flew down the stairs. I quickly hid in the laundry room, locking the door behind me. For the time being, I was safe. Now, I had time to think about where I went wrong. Why didn't I tell my mom everything? Ultimately, I knew I should've seen this coming. I started nervously pacing around the room, when I felt something wobble under my foot. I looked down, but only saw the rug. I pulled the rug away. It was some sort of a door that was revealed. I pulled the door open, but I could only see darkness. Curiosity was getting the best of me, so I jumped down into the darkness. The fall was shorter than expected. I started feeling around for a light switch. I caught a string in my hand and pulled it. A light flashed on and blinded me for a moment. When my eyes finally adjusted to the light, I looked around. It looked like a dungeon, so damp and dark despite the light. I couldn't see the other side, and I wasn't sure if I wanted to. I made a pro/con list in my head. Pro: there might be another way out. Con: Something on the other side could be worse than what I'm running from. Again, my curiosity won over me. I went back into the darkness. I felt around for another light, and suddenly, I felt my hand touch a wall . I moved my hands along the wall, feeling different papers tacked onto it until I felt a switch and flipped it on. I was once again blinded by the bright light. This switch cut on a series of lights, lighting up the whole dungeon-type place. I gasped when I caught sight of the papers along the wall. They were all pictures of me; some pictures I didn't remember taking and some pictures that had mysteriously gone missing when my mom and Phil got married. There were pictures of me as a baby, at ballerina lessons, even pictures of me in my old room in Phoenix. I turned around to look at the rest of the dungeon; there was a desk with stacks of journals on top and a ratty old mattress a few feet away. I walked over to the desk, and picked a journal up. June 2004 was written on the top cover. I opened it and began to read:

_June 17, 2004_

_Today, I went to pick up this woman I met at the market named Renee from her house. I stood on her porch anxiously waiting, but when the door opened, I saw the most beautiful girl I'd ever seen. She seemed so fragile and delicate. And those eyes! Those big brown eyes that surely captivated most people. I saw, by the way she looked at me, that I must have been gawking. I wondered if she knew what affect she has on people. I suddenly felt strangely self conscious and by the time her mother came to the door, I realized that I hadn't uttered a word to her. Bella, Renee had told me was her name, and that was the name I thought of throughout our date. Our date wasn't really that great. Renee was interesting, but I couldn't think about anything but her mesmerizing daughter. I know I should stop now, she's only 14 for God's sake. But I can't. I'm hooked…. _

For a moment, I was frozen in place, trying, without success to pick my jaw off of the floor. Just to know that his lunacy had gone on for that long made me sick to my stomach. I skipped on to his journal in June 2006 . _June 3, 2006 I asked Renee to marry me today, and she said yes. That was the only way to be closer to my Bella. I want to be there when she wakes up in the morning and look at her fall asleep at night. I want her so much, but I can't have her. My love for her can be shown as fatherly love, but it's so hard not to grab her and kiss her senseless. I saw her reaction when Renee showed her the ring, and I could tell she wasn't too pleased. Maybe she feels the same way I do, and maybe she wishes it was me and her getting married like I do. When I promise my life and love to Renee, I'll be thinking of my true love, Bella. _

My knees grew weak and I collapsed on the chair next to me. Despite my obvious horror, I just had to read more. So, I skipped ahead all the way to this year._February 26, 2009 She came back to me like I knew she would. But why did that kid, Jacob have to come? She's not his. I'm not letting her go this time. She has to understand how I feel, for she must feel it too. I want to take her and mark my territory. Once she realizes that that child Jacob doesn't love her the way I love her, we'll be together forever as it should be. I'm sorry to do this to Renee, but no one will stop me. Not Jacob, not Renee, not even Bella. I've been waiting for her for years and she's finally old enough. We can legally marry now that's she's 17 and getting closer to 18 everyday. _(A/N: I don't know if that's true, but whatever.) _I can't wait much longer. It's getting harder and harder to be around her. I will take her to my secret place, and I will have her. Bella will be mine soon enough. _

I dropped the journal back on the desk and got up. I internally cursed myself for running from him, right to the place where he originally planned to take me anyways. I had to get out. I was about to run when I felt a cold hand grip my shoulder hard.


	11. Chapter 11 Authors Note

We really can't continue without at least 10 reviews


	12. Chapter 11 the real one

**Chapter 11**

"I see you've made it here without my help". I recoiled when I heard his slithering voice.

"Please don't do this," I whispered.

He gripped my shoulder tighter and roughly turned me around. He looked at me then with a strange mixture of psychotic love and desire.

"Don't plead with me Bella, my love. I've waited too long for this moment. Don't ruin this for me. I waited all this time for you, and you didn't wait for me. Running off with that piece of trash Jacob. Don't you see he doesn't love you like I love you?" His voice began to rise. "I wanted to be your first, but look what you've become, a slut!" He was trembling with anger.

"Phil, please don't hurt me" He closed his eyes when I said his name. He took in a deep breath and the features on his face seemed to relax.

"Then give in and I won't have to."

"But I don't love you." As I said this, his face hardened again with rage and sadness.

"No, you don't know what you're saying." He began to shake his head wildly.

"Phil, what about my mom? Don't you see what this would do to her?" He sat down in the chair and buried is head in his hands. I pitied the sad figure I saw in the chair. Almost.

"Don't you think I know that? I've been fighting this ever since I met you." He looked up into my eyes, the desire returning to his. "Now I don't have to anymore, you're old enough."

"Phil, please, please, please don't do this." Hot tears started to roll down my cheeks.

"Why don't you love me?" he asked.

"I love Jake".

"No you don't!" He yelled as he grabbed my arm and pulled me toward the mattress. I struggled against him, but that only fueled his anger. He pulled back his hand and slapped me so hard I could taste the blood that started to flow from my cheek. He pushed me onto the bed and jumped on top of me. His knee pushed into my stomach hard as he pressed his lips against mine roughly. One thought entered my head.

"My baby," I mumbled against his lips. He pulled back.

"What?"

"My baby. Please don't hurt my baby."

"You're… you're pregnant?" His eyes shone with surprise and hurt.

"Yes."

"You're pregnant with his baby?" He yelled at me with an accusing tone. I was quiet then, afraid of his reaction to my answer.

"Answer me!" Phil yelled, for I just laid there dumbfounded and trembling with fear.

"Damn it, you better answer me, or I swear…." He raised his balled fist at me.

"Yes." I answered before he could finish.

"Why? Why!? Why would you do this to me?" He grabbed my shoulders and began to shake me violently under him.

"I'm sorry. Please don't hurt my baby." He stopped shaking me.

"Don't worry, I won't hurt your precious baby. But you, you're going to pay." He lifted himself off of me and walked over to the desk.

"Look at this!" He yelled pointing to the journals. "I cared so much about you. Why would you ruin what we had together?" He stopped to pick up a journal from the stack.

"August 18, 2007.…" He began to read:

"_She left me yesterday to go live with her father. I don't know how I'm going to get through it with her gone. How long can I survive on family video tapes before I'm aching for the real thing? Why did she have to leave? Did she really think Renee chose me over her? Did she realize that when she went away, she was taking my heart along with her? I need to hear her voice at least once to get through the day. I hate that I've become so weak I can't even walk past her room and without going in and sitting on her bed smelling the scent of her from her sheets. One day she will return to me and when she does I'll make sure she never leaves again." _He looked and me bitingly when he finished the last sentence.

"I won't have you today and I let you leave on two conditions, and before you leave I'll make sure we're bonded forever." He grabbed me the wrists and pulled me towards the drawer.

"Sit down." He ordered. I sat down obediently and watched while he opened the drawer of the desk and pulled out a short knife. He opened the first two buttons on my shirt and pushed it open to reveal my left shoulder and the top of my chest.

"What are you doing? I thought you said you weren't going to hurt me."

"No my dear, I said that I wouldn't hurt your precious baby. Don't worry, though. It won't hurt that much."

I got up from the chair quickly, but he swiftly put the knife to my neck.

"Now Bella, don't do anything stupid." Slowly, and with caution, I sat back down. He positioned the knife on my heart and looked at me. I looked away and closed my eyes. I suddenly felt a slow, sharp pain and felt something trickle down my skin. I could tell by the smell that it was blood. I took in a jagged breath and tried to stay conscious, but the smell and the pain was overwhelming . The pressure of the knife on my skin began to subside, and I opened my eyes. There was too much blood to see the cut. Phil took a rag from the bed and patted the bloodied spot. When he took the towel away, I realized what he meant by us being bonded forever. He had cut his initials in my chest where my heart was. The bloodied cuts were his initials P.S. for Phil Sanders. And when I looked back at him he was shirtless, but this time he had two knives in his hand.

"Bella, my love, I want you to do the same to me. Cut me with the same knife; I want your blood ruining through my veins." He handed the bloodied knife over to me. My first instinct was to stab him, but again, he was too fast. He had the other knife pushing into my stomach. "Ah ah ahh. Don't do it, mommy dearest."

I sighed and slowly raised the knife to his heart. Slowly I pushed into his flesh, my hands shaking with discomfort and carved my initials. I heard him sigh with pleasure and I dropped the knife. He opened his eyes and looked down at me with a burning desire.

"Now we are bonded together forever." I heard him say but I was too preoccupied with the burning pain in my chest. He put the rag to my chest again to stop the bleeding that was starting to flow again.

"Calm down, Bells. It was a small sacrifice to pay for what you did to me. Now, onto my two conditions. Number one: When I leave you do not run to the police and tell what you have seen here. Trust me. From what we've done to each other, they'll think we are two ardent lovers. Second: Even though you probably won't do this when you go home to Forks, which I know you will, show Jacob the scar I've given you. I want him to know I've marked _my_ territory."

It was at this last claim that my spirit finally broke. I just sat there crying. I should've guessed this was something that could happen to me. I was so prone to danger. I felt disgusted with myself for not telling my mom what happened. This could all have been avoided if I had just told her at the first signs of foul play. I sat for a long while; paralyzed with numbness, while Phil was cleaning up the blood around me and put a bandage on my chest.

" Bella," He said, snapping me out of my reverie.

" Yes?" I whispered quietly.

" We need to figure out how to tell your mother this." I finally looked at him. I couldn't believe it. He was actually serious.

Some of my defiance returned with a surge. Enough to say, "I'm going to tell her the truth, that you're a sick creep." A look of shock, then hurt, then anger slid across his face. He slapped me hard then.

" Don't you dare call me that! I love you Isabella. No part of that is sick or creepy." He voice was soft and caring. It made my skin crawl with revulsion.

" You're crazy!" I yelled, getting up.

He grabbed my hair and pulled me back to him.

" DON'T YOU EVER SAY THAT!" He yelled and threw me on the bed.

"Get up, and you and the baby are dead," He said calmly. He opened the drawer again and pulled out some handcuffs. He came quickly over to the bed and snatched my wrists up to put the handcuffs around them. He pulled me back to the headboard of the bed and handcuffed me to the bed post.

" Now you're gonna stay here until I come back. Now you have time to think about what you said. Maybe no food or water will change your mind. You're eating for two, now ya know."

" Please…." I said, fat tears streaming down my face.

" Don't ever say please to me again," He said, and headed for the entrance. I struggled to get out of the handcuffs but nothing seemed to work. I could smell all of the blood soaking through my bandage, and after a while, I couldn't take the smell. The place started to become fuzzy, and finally, I closed my eyes. That's the last thing I remember.


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

" Bella?" I heard a faint voice say.

" Bella, honey, please wake up," The voice said, with more alarm this time. I wanted to answer her, but the words seemed to stop in my throat.

"Can you hear me?" I struggled to open my heavy eyelids but they weren't cooperating, so I focused on the voice I was hearing. That voice…. Whose voice was that? I thought to myself. I could tell that whoever it was, they were weeping.

" Bella, it's mommy. Please wake up."

" Mom…" I struggled to mumble.

" Are you ok? What happened? Who did this?" She shrieked, fumbling over her words.

" He… he…" The sob caught in my throat, preventing me from speaking.

" He, who? Who's he? Tell me." 'If only I could', I wanted to say to her.

" Ph…Ph..." I stammered.

" Ph..." she repeated.

" Phil," she completed after a while in a small whisper. I weakly nodded my head. I needed to see her, to know I was indeed safe. I struggled and finally won, for once, against my heavy eyelids. Everything was blurry; her face looked like a blob of murky white paste.

" Bella, what did he do to you?" I honestly couldn't really say. My memory from then was so faded. I weakly lifted my head and looked down.

" My heart," I mumbled, and suddenly, all the horrible events seemed to flash before my eyes. Phil, rape, running, dungeon, pictures, journals, baby, knife, P.S. The last memory seared into my brain. P.S.

" What?... Bella what are you saying?"

" Heart, my heart, look."

She quickly pushed my shirt aside. I closed my eyes. I couldn't look at the pain twisting in her face, her face falling, her eyes darkening. I just couldn't see it. I heard her sigh sadly and felt what seemed like a tear fall down onto my chest. Could someone die from a broken heart? I wondered to myself. Her sigh signaled her defeat, that she was indeed broken. I finally brought myself to look at her. Her face seemed to age, sadness taking the place of life. She traced along the scar with her fingers, her breathing ragged.

" He did this to… to…" She couldn't finish; she would never be able to. The milky white paste of her skin changed into red, she was embarrassed by her sadness, that even though he did this to me, some part of her still allowed her to be hurt and not raging with anger. This wasn't the place to console her. I couldn't do anything for her here where both of our hearts ached with pain and sadness. We had to leave, but my arms were still handcuffed to the bed.

" The key. Get the key." I said shaking my arm tiredly, indicating that I was stuck.

"Where is it?" she asked. I dropped my head back against the smelly pillow. I had to think, I had to enter into his world. I thought of all the hiding places I could think of that were there. It could be taped behind one of the pictures. Wait. The pictures. The journals, I thought to myself. Had she seen them? Was she ready to be broken once more? I wanted so much for her not to see them, but I could not protect her from where I was lying. I prayed silently to myself, that her heart would have the strength to take it, only God could help her then.

" Look behind the pictures, or under the desk." The words burned in my throat as I said them.

" What pictures?" she asked, confused, as she looked back. Her breath drew in sharply as she went over to the pictures. For awhile she just stood there staring, almost as if she was unable to move, paralyzed with anguish. Her shoulders seemed to sag in misery.

" Not here." I said, loud enough for her to hear. She nodded, with her back turned toward me, appearing to understand. She began to rip the pictures of the walls, looking behind each one. First slowly and sadly, then swiftly with anger.

" It's not here," she said, running to the desk. She got on her knees and looked under the desk.

" I got it!" she yelled, getting up. She ran over to me, fumbling with the key trying to put it in the lock. After many failed attempts she calmed herself and focused. With one swift motion she put the key in the lock and turned it. I felt the cuffs release from my wrists. I lifted myself up slowly testing my body; my chest was burning with discomfort. I got off the bed and hugged my mother, she needed it the most.

" Let's go home." I whispered in her ear. She pulled back to look at me.

" What about going to the police?" she asked, confused.

" I'll explain why we can't later, I just want to go home. I want you to come back to Forks." I pleaded. She looked deeply into my eyes.

" Ok." she said simply. They're were so many things I wanted to tell her, to ask her, but that would come later. By being here, we were still in danger.

I started looking around for an exit, and found a stairwell in the far right corner of the dungeon leading up into a small door.

" A stairwell," I said, pointing to it. We both ran to the door and opened it. We climbed up the small opening, and before we knew it, we were in the corner of the basement. The top part of the door was padded with carpet. There was so much I didn't know about, so much that still waited to be uncovered, but not today. Phil would get his due, one day. We hurried up the stairs and raced for the door. There was no time to pack. The sun had almost set as we hopped inside the car, peeling off onto the street. I peeked over at my mother, her eyes were blackened with torture, her skin creased with bitterness. I hated him, not for my sake, but for what he did to her. He had shattered her.

When we reached the airport, the sky had grown dark.

" Hello. Two tickets to Seattle, Washington," Renee said to the ticket saleswoman.

" Ok, will that be for today? " the woman asked sweetly.

" Yes, please."

" Okay, your flight 676, is leaving at 10:00 p.m." Renee handed her a credit card from her wallet, and bought our tickets. We sat for a long while, waiting for the plane, neither us of saying much, absorbed in our thoughts.

" Flight 676 is leaving in 10 minutes, last call for passengers on flight 676," The voice on the intercom said.

The flight was long and silent, I didn't look over at my mom, but I heard her sobbing quietly to herself. My heart felt like a weight in my chest, aching with agony and guilt. 'You did this to her,' I thought to myself over and over again. Strangely, for a few moments on the plane, I thought about Phil. Did he know where I was at this moment? Had he predicted it all? Did he know me so well as to know I would faint from the smell of blood and worse, did he use that time to do something else, something I dared not to even think. I closed my eyes and I was in my room again. I replayed everything that happened in my head. I could've ran a little bit faster, I could've watched where I was going and not have tripped. I could've ran to a neighbors house and called the police. I could've….I could see the lights of Seattle as the plane descended. I would walk off the plane a different person than when I boarded it. I waited as my mom went to find a taxi. I slouched down in a chair. The nightmare was over, but I was still suffering." Okay, I got a taxi," Renee announced as she walked back towards me. I groaned and got up. The taxi ride felt short, and in no time we were in Forks, and driving down the familiar road home. " This place still looks the same," Renee whispered to herself. I forgot that once, she too, ran away from this place. We pulled into the driveway. How could I begin to tell Charlie all of what happened? Or worse, Jake. We knocked on the door, soaking wet from the downpour that welcomed us home. Charlie opened the door, looked at us, and stepped back to take another look. " Bella and Renee? What are you two doing here?" I couldn't tell him, and Renee seemed not able to find her voice. I broke down crying." Come in," He said, looking uncomfortable. We walked into the kitchen and sat down. Charlie went directly to the phone." Hello. Jake, Bella's here. I think you'd better come over."After a moment, he said, "Bye." and hung up the phone." Jake's on his way," he said, sitting down." Bella, tell me what happened," he pleaded, staring at my face. I looked down, avoiding his gaze and started playing with my fingers." Bella, tell me." " I want to wait for Jake." I couldn't bear to tell the story twice. We waited anxiously as Charlie continued to stare at my face. Finally, the door bell rang. Charlie got up to answer the door." Hey, Jake." I heard Charlie say. " Hey Charlie, where is she?" " In here."Jake walked into the kitchen and looked at what must have been a pale figure slouched in the chair." Bella, what happened?" " I'm fine now Jake."" Now? What happened?" Charlie said, getting anxious. I looked down again." Um… Phil he… he…. " I sighed, and looked at the floor. I couldn't bring myself to say it."What?" Jake demanded. I looked into his eyes, and slowly, with trembling fingers pulled down the collar of my shirt, revealing the marks that the knife had left. He gripped the table, cracking the wood. A growl escaped through his clenched teeth. Charlie kicked furiously at the wall." Damn it Renee, I knew she shouldn't have left. What that hell did he do to her? I'll kill him," he vowed.I looked back at Jake. His face was a deep red. " Jake, I'm fine. Let's just forget about it," I said hopelessly, for I knew he wouldn't." How could you say that after what he did to you? Look at what he's done to you!" He reminded me as if I didn't know. " I know Jake, but I just want to forget about it."" He _will_ pay," Jake growled. His voice was so choked with rage, that it was as low as a whisper. He got up to leave." Jake, where are you going?" He didn't answer; he was too consumed with rage. I ran out the house and watched him dart in the opposite direction of his house.

**Author's Note:** A big thank you to all of our readers, we hope you guys like it so far. We'd like to shoot for 20 more reviews by the next chapter, so if you could continue spreading the word, it'd be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much!


	14. Chapter 13

BPOV:

I went back into the house; Charlie was still yelling at Renee.

"How could you have let this happen?" he demanded in rage.

"Dad, it wasn't her fault. I didn't tell her anything." I lied, coming to her rescue. He seemed to calm down a bit, realizing his temper was getting the best of him.

"I'm sorry." he said to Renee.

"No, you're right. It is my fault. I should've known," she said guiltily. I sat down at the table. It was the first in a long time we all sat at the table, but I hated the fact that it had to be like this.

"Where did Jake go?" Charlie asked.

"I don't know," I said sadly. He left me when I needed him the most; my own personal sunshine had disappeared, leaving me in darkness.

"Bella, what happened?" Charlie asked. I looked over at my mom. How could I break her even more by telling her everything? It seemed I could not save her from the pain that was inevitable, as she needed to know. I told them the entire story, from coming home from school early to when I woke up in the dungeon with my mom there. I looked over at my mom. She just sat there, slouched over in the chair with her face pale and corpse-like. I felt as if I had killed her soul, her ardor, and her heart. I didn't know the person I now sat next to, and from that moment, I knew the old Renee would never return. I looked over at Charlie, whose face was red with hostility.

"We have to call the police," Charlie said in a fury.

"We can't." I said.

"Why not?" he asked. Hmm…great question, I thought to myself.

"Because… I just don't want to, okay? Can we please just forget about it? I want to move on from this.

"You can't just let him off the hook, Bells."

"He let me go, with only this scar. He was finished with me." I knew what I said was a lie, for he would never let go of me. But because he would control me with fear, I had to move on.

"Mom, dad, I'm going to bed." It had such a long and horrible day. Sleep was the remedy for sadness; it had always rescued me from the things I could not bear. I left to go upstairs, and found that my room looked the same, as if frozen in time. I didn't bother changing into my pajamas. I just flopped on my bed and tried to avoid the images that popped into my head when I closed my eyes. After awhile, I finally dozed off.

___

I opened my eyes and looked outside my window. The sky was a cloudy gray. How long had I been asleep, I wondered to myself. Suddenly, someone knocked on my door.

"Bella, honey, are you awake?" I heard Renee call, sadness still in her voice.

"Yes," I replied. She came in and sat on my bed. She looked tired, dark circles under her eyes.

"Bella, you'd better come downstairs. There is something on the news I think you should see." I looked over at her face to see that her eyes were brimming with tears.

"What is it?"

" I think you should see for yourself," she said, never looking up at me. She got up to leave, and I followed her. I had to get up slowly because my body was aching all over, for some strange reason. I went downstairs to find Charlie sitting in the living room watching the news. I looked at the TV. screen, and listened to the newscaster's report.

_"Last night, a man in Jacksonville was brutally murdered in what appeared to be an animal attack. Authorities tell us a friend called the police when the victim didn't show up for baseball practice. Later on, police found Phil Sanders, viciously slaughtered in his own home. The authorities have contacted his wife who is not a suspect in this murder. They seem to believe this was an act of an animal..."_

I couldn't listen anymore. I ran into the kitchen to call Jake. It rang, but one answered. I was about to hang up when Jake finally picked up the phone.

"Jake," I sighed with relief. But then, I thought about how he beat me to Jacksonville when I first came.

" Jake, where'd you go last night?"

" Um…," he said shakily.

"Tell me," I demanded.

"I went to Jacksonville," he admitted guiltily.

"Jake, what did you do?" I asked even though I already knew the answer.

"I went there and told him to confess to what he did to the police. He laughed it off and told me that you and him were in love and that the feelings between the two were mutual, and that I didn't understand the love you two shared. Then, he said that you two had been planning on hiding it until you were older. Then, he showed me what he meant. He showed me the cut on his heart with your initials. He said to me, 'Don't you see, she loves me and I love her too. We are connected.' I couldn't take any more after that, so I phased and lost control. By the time I changed back, he was dead. Bella, I'm so sorry."

Jake was practically begging for me to forgive him. I didn't want to feel sorry for Phil, and most of me didn't, but some part of me, for my own secret reason, pitied him. But then I thought about my mom and what all of this put her through, and all sympathy I had for him flew out of the window. Phil had gotten his due. At that moment, I made a vow to myself, that those from the grave would not control me anymore.

"Jake, I understand that you were angry, and in some ways he deserved it. Can you please come over; I just really need you here."

"I'll be there as soon as I can."

" Thank you," I said quietly.

"Bella, I love you so much, and we will get through this. I'm always going to be here for you. I've missed you so much and there are so many things I have to tell you."

" I've missed you too, Jake."

Charlie came into the kitchen then.

"Uh, Jake I have to go."

"Okay, I'll see you in a few. I love you Bella."

" Love you too. Bye," I said, hanging up the phone. I turned to Charlie. He started talking before I could say anything.

"Bells...um… I don't really know how to help you through this, but I just want you to know that none of this is your fault." I couldn't bring myself to believe that.

"I know," I lied.

"Char-, I mean, dad, Jake's coming over," I added quickly.

"Oh, okay. Did you ever find out where Jake went?"

"He just went home to cool off," I lied again, hoping the blush on my face didn't betray me.

Charlie must not have noticed my blush as he replied, "Oh."

"It's a shame what happened to Phil," Charlie continued, but I knew better; he was glad that Phil was dead. It showed very clearly in his eyes. Renee came into the room just then. Her eyes were red, but her face looked stronger, wiser. I ran to give her a hug, feeling the need to be the parent again. She pulled away and looked at me.

"Bella, you don't need to comfort me. I'm the parent, and I'd forgotten that. Bella, I've been so selfish and weak. This entire time you've been comforting me and wiping my tears away. You've been more concerned about me than yourself, and I let you be. Not once have I comforted you, but that's going to change," she said. I could see through her red eyes a newfound strength that wasn't there before. Charlie looked at her with an expression I hadn't seen in a long time. He gazed upon her with love. We all sat at the table as Charlie filled me in about everything that happened in Forks while I was gone. The door bell rang, and I got up and ran to the door. It was Jake.

"Hey, Jake," I greeted, giving him a cautious hug.

"Hey," he whispered into my hair. For a moment we just stood there with our arms wrapped around each other. I missed that, that 'I could get use to this' feeling. We let go of each other rather reluctantly and went into the living room.

"Hey Charlie, hey Renee."

"Hey, Jake," they both replied. It was clear that Charlie and Renee weren't going to leave, and Jake and I needed to talk in privacy, so I decided to test Charlie's carefully erected boundaries.

"We're going to go upstairs, okay?"

"Okay," Charlie allowed. Renee looked over at him, confused. She was still new at this parent thing, and obviously questioned Charlie's judgment. I was grateful that she let it drop, however. Jake and I walked to my room and sat on my bed. Jake took my hand.

"We're going to have to tell them about the baby eventually," I started.

"I know. But not today. Let's make tonight about us."

" Where do you want to go?" I asked, truly curious.

"Let's go to our tree house," he replied. I noticed the emphasis he placed on the 'our' part to include the idea that we were now a team.

"Okay," I agreed. We went downstairs to tell Charlie and Renee about our plans. As I came into the living room, I noticed Charlie was laughing and smiling.

" Hey Bells."

" Dad, can I and Jake go out?"

" Sure." He said easily.

"Um… honey, what time are you coming back?" Renee asked, hesitating. I could tell that she thought she was overstepping some boundaries, but one day, she'd find out that as a parent there are no boundaries.

"Um…" I looked to Jake.

"I guess 11:00," he told Renee.

"Okay," she said looking at Charlie to see if she did the right thing. Charlie nodded confirming her decision. As Jake and I turned towards the door, I realized that we would need a few things first.

I went back to ask, "Dad, do we have a flashlight around here?"

" Sure, it's in the garage."

" Thanks." I asked Jacob to grab the flashlight while I ran upstairs to get a blanket. I went upstairs to my room, and grabbed the blanket off of my bed. I was about to walk back out when I noticed the bracelet Jake had given me on my nightstand. I walked over, took it in my hands and sat down on my bed. I looked at the little charm and remembered the first time we kissed. I never thought that any of this would happen, but it did, and the fact that we actually made it this far was a blessing. I heard a knock on the door.

"Come in."

It was Jake. He came and sat next to me on the bed, and looked at the bracelet.

" I can't believe you kept it."

" Jake, this means a lot to me. I'd never lose It."

" I know, but it's just that with everything that happened, I thought that you left it in Jacksonville."

" I left it here in Forks because I didn't want Jacksonville to have all of me."

" Can I have all of you, forever?" Jake asked with a sincere grin on his face.

"Forever," I agreed.

He grabbed my hand and got up, taking me with him. We went past the kitchen and out the door; I could hear the echoes of my parents' goodbyes behind us.

"Can we take your truck?" Jake asked. I assumed he had run over here because his car was nowhere in sight.

" Yeah, sure."

" I'll drive," he offered, opening the passenger door for me. He got in the car and started to back out of the driveway.

"What are we going to tell everyone?" I asked.

"Well we're going to tell Billy, Charlie, and Renee later on, and the pack already knows. It's kinda hard keeping things from them."

" I mean everyone else. You know, the people at school. Do you want to hide it?"

" Well, it's your choice. What do you want to do?"

" I want what you want."

Jake looked thoughtful for a moment before he started. "It doesn't matter to me. Of course, I want the whole world to know that you're mine. But I'm fine with not saying anything until the baby is born if that's what you want. So either we can shout it from the rooftops or whisper it to each other. It's up to you."

" I guess we could tell people. I mean, it wouldn't be the first time this sort of thing has happened."

" Okay."

On the way to the campsite we talked about all our memories, the good and the bad. It felt great to talk about the good memories and I felt healing begin to take place while we talked about the bad ones. When we arrived at the clubhouse it looked just how we left it. I thought about that night and what it caused. What would've happened if Jake never imprinted on me? If he never came to Jacksonville, if I never got pregnant, where would I be? Something changed that night besides the obvious, but I couldn't quite put it into words what it was.

Jake helped me up into the club house. Everything looked the same, but there was a new picture sitting next to the one of his mother. I walked over to have a look at it, and it was a picture of me. He came behind me and put his arms around my waist.

"Now I have pictures of the only two women I've ever loved," he whispered in my ear.

"What about your sister Rachael?"

" Ahh... she's okay," he chuckled.

I smiled and looked up through the sky light. The sky had become a cloudy gray. We sat down on the bed. Jake looked at me with a concerned look on his face and took my hands in his.

"Bella, I want you to tell me all of what happened. Let's start from the beginning. When did you know he felt something for you?" he asked. I looked down, and suddenly my pants became very interesting.

"That morning after I came," I said to my pants. He tilted my chin up with his fingers.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked.

"I couldn't come back to Forks yet, I wasn't ready."

" But Bella, you should've told me. I could've…. "He looked down, a single tear running down his cheek.

"Jake, this isn't your fault." He looked over at me.

"Bella, it was my selfish need for you to get over him once and for all and my stupid temper that left you there alone with him. I'm so sorry. "Jake hung his head in shame.

" Jake, none of this is your fault, I should've told you." Jake just made a face and changed the subject.

"Bella, I went to the Cullens' house last night when I came back." The old ache returned to my heart when he mentioned their name.

"You talked to them?"

"I've been for a few days now. It's a long story."

" We've got time."

"When I came back from Jacksonville last night, I felt really guilty about what I did. I kept telling myself he deserved it, but it still didn't help the way I felt. I was afraid to tell you, afraid of what you would say, how you would react, of what you would think of me from then on. The pack immediately knew and cursed me for almost giving us away because of my anger. I then remembered how kind hearted Carlisle was when I first met him, but that's another story. I knew he would at least listen to my defense. So last night, I went to the Cullens' and confessed my sins to Carlisle. He listened without judgment, he did not scold me for my rash actions but instead he helped me deal with my heavy conscious. He confessed his own regrets about changing Rosalie and how maybe things would have been better if he had given her a choice. He admitted he took the blame for Rosalie's bitterness and ultimately Edward's loneliness at the end, but he reminded me that it was the past and that I could never change what happened and that it was best to move forward and learn from my mistakes. I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I didn't know how you felt about them, and I didn't want to bring it up." His face was drawn with torture as if he just confessed to performing the blackest kind of blasphemy.

"Jake, you could've told me about it. I wouldn't have judged you. Jake, you can tell me anything. I'm not mad at you; I'm actually relieved that you made a connection with them. I was afraid I would never be able to make things right again. I miss Alice."

He smiled with obvious relief. "I think we should visit them."

" We should," I agreed nervously. I couldn't help but wonder if they would think I betrayed them by loving someone other than their son. Nonetheless, the son who killed himself because of me. Jake must've read my anxiety and the reasons behind it.

"Bella, they miss you. They understand that you moved on, and they wanted you to. They're not mad at you." I put my head on his shoulder.

"I hope so," I whispered into his shoulder.

He pulled back to look at my face. "Bella..." he said simply before taking my face in his hands and kissing me gently. Slowly the kiss became more intense, and after everything that happened over the past few days, in his arms, the rest of the world seemed to slip away. I pulled away to catch my breath.

"I love you," he murmured.

"I love you too."

He took my face in his hands, preparing to kiss me again when we heard a bolt of thunder and a loud crash. I jumped up to look out the tree house; it was raining hard and a tree had fallen down. I looked up to the sky, and it was a scary shade of gray. Jake came to stand behind me.

"Oh man," he groaned. "How are we gonna get home?"

" I guess we'll have to stay here tonight."

He took another look outside. "Good idea." We walked back over to the bed.

"You never finished telling me about what happened," he said, serious again. I retold the story to him, everything from passing out at school, to when I woke up with my mom hovering over me. I told him about the journals and the pictures, everything.

"Bella, why didn't you go to the police?" He asked. That was the one question I was hoping he wouldn't ask.

"Because..." I trailed off.

"Because what?"

" I know he did this horrible thing to me, but I still felt pity for him."

"Why?" Jake asked, totally confused.

"I guess it was because in a strange way, I could relate to him. We both loved someone we could never have. I couldn't imagine what it must feel like not to have anyone to help you get through it. If it weren't for you, and the pack, and Charlie, I don't think I would have ever gotten over Edward. Phil probably had no one to turn to who wouldn't judge him, and he'd be embarrassed to seek professional help so his obsession grew into a delusive relationship. He showed his sadness in anger and violence when I told him I didn't love him, when I had shown mine in depression when Edward left me. He had no one but himself. What else could he do? I'm not saying what he did was right, but I understand a bit of his struggle. In some ways, I could have been him, but I was lucky." The memory of me in the dungeon, watching Phil slouched in the chair his hands covering his face was playing in my mind as I explained. I did truly pity the sad figure in the chair, I understood his torture and his anger, the wound on my chest was his last hope. "Now, you know why I didn't want to call the police. He needed help, prison wouldn't have changed him. "

Jake had an odd look on his face. It wasn't skeptical, but I could tell that he didn't fully understand me, either. "I still don't agree with it, but I understand your reasons," he finally said. That was all I could ask for.

"Bella, I know this is a weird question, but could I look at _it_ again?" he asked.

"Um, okay." I slowly pushed back my shirt to reveal my wound, some sort of scab started to form on it. He traced the scar with his fingers.

"I wish I could just make it disappear. I wish I could make everything that happened go away," he muttered sadly.

"I want us to move on from this and start the rest of our lives. We have a baby to take care of," I reminded him. He smiled at me and put his hand on my stomach.

"I've already started loving this baby."

" Or babies. We could have twins," I corrected him.

"I hadn't really thought about that," he said with a frown.

"Can you imagine two mini Jacobs running around the house?"

"I think one mini me around the house is enough," he said nervously. I laughed. We just lay there for a moment, staring at each other. Jake was the first to break the silence.

" Bella, you're gonna make a great mom."

" You really think so?" I asked skeptically.

"From all the stories you told me about you having to get Renee out of all kinds of sticky situations, taking care of her when she was sick, I'm sure you've had more than enough practice."

I thought about the times when I had to push aside the things that were hurting me to rub her back and worry how she would ever get through it. If parenting meant loving your children with all your heart, wanting them to be always happy and healthy, protecting them from the cruelty of the world, never wanting them to feel pain or having any regrets, and if it meant when you let your guard down and the world somehow slipped in, feeling their pain, then I think I could do that as I did for Renee. If it meant loving them unconditionally, then I had been a parent for most of my life.

"Jake," I whispered.

"Yeah?"

"If we have a girl, I want to name her Mary, after your mother."

A huge grin lit up his face." That's sounds great."

I got up from the bed and walked over to the table. I took his mother's picture and went back to the bed.

"Tell me more about her," I said, staring down at her picture.

"She was the craziest, most wonderful mom. One time when I was little, I came home with a black eye. She demanded me to tell her who did it, when I finally told her she stomped all the way to his house and demanded he apologize. He laughed and started to walk away when she grabbed him by the ear and made him apologize. He finally apologized and ran off in horror." He laughed with a wistful look in his eye." She was the worst cook, she could burn water," He continued, smiling, his eyes caught in a memory.

"Do you miss her?" I asked quietly.

"Yes," he answered softly." I wish she could be here," he said. "I wish she could've met you."

I turned to look at him. Jacob glanced at me, and then looked up at the ceiling. His glance was like a plea, like a cry for help from a boy who could never cry.

"How did she, um…." I couldn't finish the question. His eyes darkened.

"Die? Is that what you wanted to ask?" I realized that his voice was husky with somewhat diluted sorrow.

" Yes."

" I… I don't know," he said.

"But…"

"My dad and mom went off one day to go out to dinner with Henry Clearwater, but they never came back. Finally, my dad came home in the morning, but he was alone. I asked him where my mom was, and he said she had died in a car accident."

" Wait, I thought you said you didn't know how she died."

"I didn't believe what he said. If she had died in a car accident, then why was she the only one who got hurt so badly that she had to have a closed casket funeral? He came out without a scratch, but he was sore for days and wouldn't tell me what was wrong. Then, a few days later, the weirdest thing happened. Billy went out hunting one morning, and while he was gone, I got a call from the hospital. He had been rushed there after a supposed hunting accident. It was then that we found out he was paralyzed." Jake let out a small strangled cry of pain, tears rolling down his cheek.

"Oh, Jake." I couldn't imagine what he was going through.

"Why couldn't he just tell me what happened?" he asked in agony, sobbing a little. I could tell by the sadness in his voice that this wasn't the first time he'd asked that question. It was a question only his father could answer. I could only rub his back and tell him everything was okay. But his story left me wondering what really happened that night, and hoping Jake wasn't right. After a few minutes, Jake seemed to calm down. He just lay there, his head on my lap, staring straight ahead. I ran my fingers through his hair, trying to soothe him.

"Bella," he said after a while.

" Yes, Jake?"

" I miss her," he said softly.

"I know."

He closed his eyes, and after a while, he started to snore. I lifted his head lightly and placed it on the bed. I snuggled next to him and after a while I drifted off to sleep with him.

(A/N: Sorry the update took so long. Also, we love how many subscriptions we're getting, but we would like more reviews, please. Thanks, and long live Bella & Jake!)


	15. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

**JPOV:** I woke up and looked around. Bella was sleeping with a stressed look on her face, her eyebrows furrowed, her hair tangled. Did I really tell her that? It wasn't as if she could ever answer the question I asked her. I loved Bella, but I still had so much love for my mother, a mother that wasn't here to take it. I did something I promised myself I would never do around her, I let my weakness show out in the open, and I let her see me broken and vulnerable. I tapped her arm lightly, waking her from her nightmare. She yawned and rubbed her eyes.

" Jake, I had the worst nightmare."

" Let me guess. It was about what I told you last night."

" How'd you know?"

"Lucky guess."

" I dreamed that your mom..." she started and stopped when she saw me look down.

"Sorry." she said.

" Bella, you have nothing to be sorry about."

" I shouldn't have asked you, it was none of my business."

" Bella, we're a team now. My business _is_ your business."

" Ok, well I'm sorry my timing sucks," she said, smiling. Her smile always brightened my mood.

"Try to work on that," I teased her. She hit me softly on the arm; I smiled in return.

She got up and looked outside. "All clear. We'd better get back to my house. I hope Charlie and Renee aren't mad."

"I'm sure they'll understand," I said, getting up, but then I thought about the last time we slept overnight at the tree house.

"Renee won't be, at least." She glanced at me nervously.

"Let's hurry back," she decided, grabbing the blanket off the bed. "Can you get the flashlight?" she asked, about to climb down.

I grabbed her arm to pull her to me and kissed her softly.

" I love you, Bella."

" I love you too, she replied with a smile." I pulled her closer for a moment then let her go. I went to get the flashlight off the table, and as I looked at my mother's picture, pain tore through my chest. Would I ever know what really happened that night? I wanted so badly to believe the lie my father spun like my sister did, and just let go, but I couldn't. Something inside me knew there was more to the story, but how could I accuse my father of lying about such a sore subject? I grabbed the flashlight from the table and climbed down the tree house ladder to where Bella was waiting.

I ran to the car with Bella on my back. When we got there, Bella hopped off my back and got into the car. I got into the driver's seat and sped away. In about an hour, I pulled into her driveway. After a quick glance in my direction, Bella got out and ran into the house; I got out of the car and followed her. When I came in, Charlie and Renee were sitting in the kitchen, staring at Bella, and waiting for an explanation.

"Mom, dad, I'm sorry I'm late. There was a storm and..." Before she could continue, Renee burst out of her chair.

"Late! Bella, you were gone all night. Do you know how worried I was? Where were you?"

" Jake's tree house, it was raining too hard for us to come back." she whispered quietly.

Renee seemed to relax. "Okay…"

"Mom, Dad, me and Jake would like to talk you about something important." Bella looked at me nervously and took my hand for reassurance. I held on to her small hand tightly.

"What is it?" We both sat down at the table. Once she settled in her chair, Bella looked at me, and I slowly nodded, encouraging her.

"I'm pregnant," she finally said in an inaudible tone.

"What!?" Charlie and Renee both asked in unison.

"I'm pregnant," she repeated louder. For a moment, all I could hear was the TV in the background. There was a baseball game on. Renee was in shock and Charlie's expression was unfathomable. I decided that it was my turn to say something.

"Don't worry, we'll be able to take good care of the baby. Bella can still go to school and I'll get a job," I said, trying to break the ice. Renee seemed to regain herself but Charlie still had the same expression.

"Are you going to say anything?" Bella asked.

"You're having a baby," Renee said, trying her best to be happy for us.

"How are you going to take of it?" Charlie finally interjected. "You being here, and Jake at his house, you can't raise a baby that way." Me and Bella looked at each other and turned back to Charlie.

"We hadn't thought about that yet," Bella admitted.

"It only seems right that you two should get married," Charlie pressed. I looked at Bella again.

"We could wait until after high school. After that, I don't see why we couldn't," I said nervously. I didn't want to push Bella into marriage. I knew how she felt about it; I knew she feared the same fate as her mother if she got married young. But we had a baby to raise together. Bella looked at me with that 'We'll talk later' expression on her face. I nodded in agreement.

"Well, welcome to the family, I guess," Charlie said, shaking my hand.

"Wait, you're not mad?" Bella asked, confused. Charlie chuckled once.

"Bells, how could I punish you? Your mom and I did the same thing. Besides, Jake's practically family anyways, and to tell you the truth, I always hoped you two would get together."

Renee came over to sit right next to Bella. Charlie and I fell into a conversation of would sport his future grandson would play, but I could still hear what Renee was saying to Bella.

"I'll help you every step of the way. Through the morning sickness, swollen ankles, mood swings, and random food cravings," Renee assured Bella. I knew she was trying to be supportive but it just seemed to make Bella more nervous. I sensed her anxiety and put my arm around her shoulder, pulling her closer to me.

"Thanks for the support mom," Bella said.

"No problem, honey." I liked the new Renee. She seemed to be more of a mother to Bella.

Charlie and Renee left the room, giving us some alone time. I rushed to explain before Bella could argue.

" Bella, I know how you feel about marriage, but we have a baby to take care of, and I want to be there with you for every moment of our kid's life. Besides, we have about a year before I can legally marry you, so anyways, we've got time." This seemed to relax her a bit.

"That's all I'm asking for," she said, smiling in relief.

"Two parents down, one to go," I reminded her.

"Let's tell him tomorrow," she said. I looked down as my heart thudded unevenly in my chest.

"I don't think that's such a good idea," I told her.

"Why? Jake, what's wrong?" she asked, obviously noticing my sudden anxiety.

"It's just not a good day. Maybe the day after tomorrow," I said, getting up from the table.

"Okay," she gave in, confused. We walked to the door.

"Well, I'll see you the day _after_ tomorrow, okay? I love you, Bella."

My heart broke a little when she replied sadly, "I love you too, Jake."

" Bye…." And with that, I left.

**BPOV:**

I walked back to the living room where my parents were sitting, but decided to go upstairs into my room. I flopped unto my bed with nothing but thoughts of Jake in my head. I wondered why he got so stiff when I had suggested we tell Billy tomorrow. My thoughts were interrupted when I heard someone knock on the door.

"Bella, honey can I come in?" It sounded like Renee.

"Sure, mom."

She walked in and sat at the foot of my bed.

"This room hasn't changed much, it looks just like it did when you were a baby," she said, her eyes wondering about the room. "So, I haven't been to Forks in years, how are the townsfolk getting along without me?" she asked playfully.

"Well, the town looks pretty much the same since I came here when I was little. Harry Clearwater passed away a few months ago." Her eyes darted guiltily to the floor before meeting mine again.

"Billy is… well, Billy is as sweet as always." She smiled sadly.

"You know, Billy was the one who introduced me to your father. I was at the Clearwaters' Sunday barbecue when Billy comes up to me and introduces me to your father. Oh Bells, back then your father was hot. He had the deepest blue eyes I've ever seen and the cutest little tush," she added with a giggle.

"Oh God, mom that's dad you're talking about," I said, trying to get the disturbing image out of my head.

"Well, back then your father wasn't your father. He was sweet and funny, and it was so cute how he was so protective of me," she said, smiling at the memories, and then she sighed. "Like I said, that was when your father wasn't _your_ father…Oh Bella, when I found out I was pregnant, I was so scared. Charlie was happy and supportive, but I couldn't stand the stares I would get from people whenever I went out. People were shaking their heads and their eyes seemed to scream 'there goes another one.' That's why I left and took you with me. I did love your father, but there was a part of me that still wanted to see places and live. I knew that if I stayed here, that I would be just like all the other girls who got pregnant at an early age, simply inheriting my place in the kitchen, cooking and cleaning. And when Mary died, I couldn't take it; I couldn't even make it to her funeral…."

"Wait, you knew Jake's mother?" I asked. She looked down, trying to hide the tears that had started to swell in her eyes.

"Yes. We went to high school together, she was my best friend. Our families had always been good friends and even though I wasn't from their tribe, they still allowed me to attend the La Push schools. It hurt me the most to leave without paying my final respects. I left the day she died and I was just too scared to come back for the funeral, afraid of what people would think of me. I was a coward and I ruined the only chance I had to finally say goodbye. And with the anniversary of her death being tomorrow, all of my regrets are coming back to Me."

" So that's why Jake doesn't want to tell Billy tomorrow?"

" I imagine so. Billy especially took it hard." It was something about the way she said it, that made me curious.

"Do you know what happened to her?" I asked quietly.

"It's not my story to tell," she replied simply.

"So you were there that night?"

"Yes." I could tell by the look in her eyes that she wasn't going to budge on that subject.

"Oh! I forgot to tell you that your friend Aiden called," she said, quickly changing the subject. I had forgotten that he said he would call me. He must have freaked out when he heard about Phil's murder.

"He said he was from Jacksonville," Renee continued.

"Yeah, he was a friend I met at school," I mumbled.

"A friend, huh?" she pressed.

" Yes, just a friend, mom."

" I'm just saying, I've never met anyone who calls from a different state just to talk to someone they've only known for half a day. He likes you."

" No, he doesn't." I refused to believe that.

"Well, I think it's best to set him straight now," Renee stated firmly.

" Mom, I really don't think it's that serious."

" Okay," she said with that 'been there, done that' look in her eyes.

"Fine, I'll call him now and set everything straight," I said, getting up to walk down stairs. Renee followed.

"Here's the number," she said, taking a sticky note off of the refrigerator. I picked up the phone and dialed his number.

"Hello?" I heard a familiar voice say.

" Hi, this is Bella."

" I heard about what happened. I'm so sorry, Bella. I was so worried when I called and no one answered that day you got sick, and you weren't in school the next day. Then I heard on the news about what happened and called this number. Are you okay?" he asked in a shockingly sincere and concerned voice.

"I'm fine. Thanks for calling to check up on me. That was really nice of you."

" Well, I was worried about you, and besides, I wanted to talk you. You got me detention for skipping class, you know." I could hear the smile in his voice.

"No, I think you did that by yourself," I teased.

"I can't take all the credit. I did have a little help by a mysterious brown eyed girl." I blushed when he said this." So, we never really talked. I don't even know your last name."

" Swan," I replied shortly. I didn't really like where this was going.

"Hmmm… Bella Swan." His voice seemed to caress my name.

" And yours?"

"Conner."

"Aiden Conner," I repeated.

"So why did you run off so quickly?" I detected the hint of sadness in his voice.

"Umm…" I racked my brain for a lie. "I really missed my dad." My voice squeaked at the end, giving me away. He chuckled at my obvious failure to lie convincingly.

" Well when you decide to tell me the truth, let me know."

" Okay," I agreed.

"You know, I'm coming to Forks in a few days," Aiden continued.

"Oh yeah? For what?"

" Well actually, I'm going to Seattle. My parents are divorced and I'm going to live with my mom for a little while."

" Well, maybe we can hang out sometime." I bit my lip, was I flirting? I just liked him as a friend. I hoped he wouldn't take this the wrong way.

"I'd like that." His voice was soft; the hope in it was almost tangible. I had to end this now.

"You can meet my boyfriend," I whispered into the phone.

"Oh." I could hear the disappointment in his voice. My mom was right. How could I have led him on without knowing it?

"So, you have a boyfriend," he said after a while.

" Yep."

" Lucky guy."

" But we can still hang out and stuff." After all, I still wanted him as a friend.

"Cool," he said, and I could tell his smile was returning. " So, how's your mom?"

" She's been better, but she's getting through it."

" And how are you?"

"I told you I was fine."

" I mean emotionally, how are you?"

" I'll be better." I said quietly.

"I'm here if you need me. Please, remember that." He said this with such sincerity and feeling. I knew he meant it.

"Thanks, Aiden."

" Sure thing. Bella, I have to go. I'll call you, okay?"

" Okay, bye."

"Bye." I hung up the phone and went to the kitchen where Renee was sitting.

" So what'd he say?"

" Nothing, he just asked me how I was and stuff." I deliberately left out the Forks/Seattle part.

" So what's this about him coming to Forks?"

" Mom!!" I'd had a feeling she would be listening.

"Sorry, I couldn't help overhearing," she replied with a sheepish grin.

" Well, his parents are divorced and I guess he's staying with his mom now."

" Oh," she said simply, but I knew what she was thinking.

"So what do you want for dinner?" I asked, moving to a different subject.

"I thought I'd cook," Renee complained. "How about I make steak and kidney pie?" I just looked at her.

"I think I should do the cooking for a while," I said gently.

"What? No good?"

" You just got here and you already want to kill Charlie?" I teased.

"Fine," she said with a smile. "What do you suggest we make, oh great Chef Bella?"

" Lasagna."

" Okay," she agreed.

For an hour we were in the kitchen making lasagna. Renee told me stories about when she and Charlie were dating and about Jake's mom. I could tell why Jake loved his mom so much. From the stories Renee told me about her, she seemed to touch everyone she met. Every time I would bring up her death, Renee would skillfully avoid the question. Dinner turned out nicely and by the way my parents were looking at each other, it seemed as if the divorce never happened. After a while, I headed up stairs to my room to go to sleep. I decided that tomorrow, I would go to Jake's and tell him what I knew.

------------------  
(A/N: It's the next day. The characters points of views go back and forth, so please work with me.)

**JPOV:**

Today was the day my mother had died and half of me went along with her. On these days I just sat looking at her picture, trying to move on, trying to block that day out of my mind. No one ever visited on this day, no one ever came outside. Today was the day of mourning for all who loved her. So of course, I was angry when I heard a knock at the door. I reluctantly got up to answer it. When I opened the door I was surprised to see that it was Bella.

"Bella, what are you doing here?" I said to her, a little irritated.

"I know, I'm sorry, but why didn't you tell me the anniversary of your mother's death was today?" she asked, concerned. I sighed.

"It's not something I usually tell people, besides I didn't want you to see me like this." She peered at my face and frowned. I took a step back to look into the hallway mirror. I had definitely seen worse, but the sadness and devastation was still apparent on my face. My eyes looked like hell and my mouth was set in a way that it seemed it would never be up to the task of smiling again. Bella pulled me from my harsh self- assessment.

"Jake, I'm really sorry, but I just want to be here for you." I couldn't argue with Bella's obvious concern. I sighed and pulled her into my arms.

"Bells, I know. And I'm sorry for being a bit…off today. I usually don't leave the house, but you can stay with me today, if you want." All through this, I still couldn't even smile to reassure her, and I think that fact scrambled her response. She looked uncertain.

"Well, Jake, I don't want to interrupt, or anything. But I'll stay only if you want me to."

I hesitated for a split second. On one hand, I didn't want Bells to see me at my absolute lowest point. But then on the other hand, she seemed willing enough to stay with me. Besides, she could even help me out, possibly. Being completely honest with myself, I both wanted and needed Bella to stay with me. I didn't really want to be away from her. Especially not now. Knowing this, I told her, "Bella, I want you to stay with me" and hugged her a little bit closer. She smiled her heartbreaking smile, and I couldn't help but somehow pull off a tiny grin. I let her go briefly and closed and locked the door. Then, I took her hand and towed her off towards my room.

We sat down on my bed, and I could tell by the way her hands were shaking that she was beginning to get uncomfortable. "Bella, what's wrong?" I asked, concerned with her sudden anxiousness.

"Jake I think I might have a way to figure out how your mom died. After you left last night, my mom confessed that she knew your mother. She told me that they were best friends, they went to high school together, and that she was there when she died, but she won't tell me anything that happened that night. I was hoping that if you asked her, she might tell you." She exhaled in relief as if she'd been dying to tell me ever since she'd heard it. For a second, I just stared at my mom's picture. Why didn't Billy ever mention that Renee and mom were friends? Did he think that if I knew, I would go fishing around to find out more about how she died?

"One second," I told Bella as I went to go talk to my father in the kitchen. "Dad, why didn't you...." I paused when I saw my father hunched over whispering something to my mother's picture.

"Mare, oh Mare, I didn't mean to. I loved you so much, and I'm so sorry. I never meant to hurt you," he whispered, sobbing with extreme grief. My heart sunk as I walked, dazed and shaking past the kitchen and out of the house. I could hear Bella calling out my name but I was too consumed with rage to acknowledge her.

**BPOV**: When Jake didn't come back, I started to worry. I then saw movement outside of Jake's bedroom window. He had clearly run outside, and he was trembling all over. I ran outside to see what was up."Jake, what's wrong?! What happened?" I asked. He continued to shake hysterically. Finally he answered, half crying, half screaming.

"He had no right to kill her. She was my mother!!" Jake's trembling suddenly calmed, and before I knew it, he had phased. The giant russet wolf turned around swiftly and began to walk towards me, his eyes wide with horror, as if he were caught in a nightmare.

"Jake…." I said, but he continued to walk toward me.

"Jake, listen to me. You don't want to be like him, don't make the same mistake he did." He stopped and looked at me with tears in his eyes, and howled in pain. After a while, he phased back, falling to his knees. I rushed over to him, struggling to hold him up.

"Bella, let me talk to her. Let me talk to Renee," Jake commanded coldly.

"Ok. I'll drive." I said. It was then that I realized that Jake was completely naked after phasing. I ran back into Jake's house and into his room. I grabbed the first pair of sweatpants I saw in his drawer, and dashed back outside, without so much as a glance at Billy. I handed Jake the pants, which he put on immediately, and climbed into the driver's seat.

The car ride to my house was silent. I glanced over a couple of times at Jake, who was staring blindly out the window, his features tense with concentration. Jake put his hand on mine as I pulled into my driveway.

"Are you ready?" I asked him.

"I've been waiting most of my life for what I'm about to hear, but now, I don't know," he replied, confused. "I'm afraid...I'm afraid I won't be able to take it and phase like I did back there. Bella, I'm so sorry. I just…."

"It's okay. Jake, you have a right to know what happened to your mother. I'll be here to calm you down if you begin to lose control." He closed his eyes and inhaled. He was the first to leave the truck, and I followed. We walked through the front door and found Renee and Charlie sitting at the kitchen table.

"Hey, kids," they simultaneously greeted.

"Hey mom, hey dad. Um… mom, me and Jake would like to talk to you alone."

"About what honey?" she asked, her eyes shifting from me to Jake.

"What we talked about last night," I said, not wanting to give hints to Charlie, who looked bewildered.

"Oh…" she said in realization." Charlie, could you give us a second?"

"Okay," he said, getting up, and walking to the living room. Charlie never was one to pry.

Jake and I sat down at the table. Renee looked down and began nervously playing with her fingers.

"Renee," Jake finally said. "What happened to my mother?"

"Well..." Renee started hesitantly.

"Renee, please," Jake said, reaching across the table to hold her hands still. She looked up at us with tears in her eyes.

"I guess I should start from the beginning. Me and your mother were best friends in high school. We did everything together, and told each other everything. She told me about the Quileute and the wolf clan, about their tradition and all of the legends, but neither one of us ever met a guy with the gift mainly because they were rare. In our senior year, Mary met Harry Clearwater and oh, I knew from the very second I saw those two together that they were in love. She told me later on that he had imprinted on her. Harry made it is business to stay by her side all through senior year until one day, I'll never forget it, when he came up to her in the hallway and kissed her frantically as if it was their last kiss and ran out of the school. After that, he was missing for days and when he came back, he started to ignore her. She was devastated by it. For days she wouldn't eat or come to school or talk to anyone, and Harry never came back to school. A few months went by, but Mary never recovered until one day, she met Billy and it seemed as if she was her old self again. But sometimes, I could still see it in her eyes, the heartache. Billy introduced me to Charlie, and by the end of the summer, both Mary and I were married. And then, Harry married Sue, and that's when Mare became secretive and we slowly separated. When Charlie and I would go to the Clearwaters' barbeques, she pretended as if I wasn't there, but deep down I knew something was wrong. Billy would look at her with love and she would look down in revulsion. So one night, I called her and made her tell me what was going on. She was hesitant at first, but I promised her I wouldn't tell anyone. She told me that she and Harry had begun talking again, and that he confessed he was still in love with her, but wouldn't tell her why he stopped talking to her. Mary admitted that part of her still belonged to Harry and that she'd been having an affair with him." Renee paused here to look at Jake, who seemed to be in a world of his own, and then continued. "It had been months after that when I went to one of the Clearwaters' barbeques alone. Everything was normal until Mare excused herself to go to the bathroom and Harry followed. I knew what was about to happen, but I kept silent. After a while, Billy started to get worried and went to go look for her. I followed, trying to stop him, but it was too late; Billy had found the two embracing in Harry's room. Billy was furious and started to scream at her, calling her all sorts of terrible names, and kept yelling at Harry, 'I warned you!' The two began to fight in the house, destroying everything until they made it outside and phased. Mare tried to stop them, and ran in between them. That's when Billy lashed out at her and then she fell to the ground. The second I looked at her, I knew she was dead. That's when I ran as fast I could, took Bella, and left this town. I'm so sorry that I didn't stay to help her," Renee finished, crying. I looked at Jake, and saw that his eyes were empty of emotion, his face was creased with anguish and understanding. I put my arms around him and pulled him close to me.

"He killed her..." Jake kept repeating into my shoulder, which was beginning to dampen with his hot tears. The door bell rang and Charlie got up to answer it.

"Sure, come in," I heard him say. "Jake, someone's here for you!" Charlie announced as he wheeled Billy in.

"Jake, I can explain..."

(A/N: Thanks for all the reviews and support. We need at least 10 reviews to put up the next chapter.)


	16. Chapter 15

***Chapter 15 ***

**BPOV**:

Jake yanked out of my grasp and jumped out of the chair. "NO! You  
killed her. I don't want to hear it!"

" Jake please, it was a horrible mistake."

"How could you... how could you lose control? On your own wife, my mother!" Jake screamed.

"The same way you did at Bella today!" Billy finally snapped back. Jake was silent.

"No…" Jake whispered.

"Yes, I saw what you did. Now sit down and listen," Billy demanded. Jake sat down  
obediently.

"Both me and Harry imprinted on your mother. This had never happened before in Quileute history, so the pack had came together and decided that since I was the alpha wolf I would have her. Harry argued against it till his face turned blue saying that I couldn't stop him but as the alpha wolf I commanded him to never mention what happened to Mare. After that he disappeared for days, I tried to read his thoughts to find his location but all I could see was Mare in all the places they'd been. I didn't bother trying to talk to him, because knew his heart was aching with anger and resentment and he wouldn't have listened. When he came back, he acted as if nothing had ever happened, but I sometimes would catch him looking at me with envy every time I was with Mare. I never took into account the affect it must of had on Mare, when a wolf imprints on his mate they also feel the bond, but I just assumed that since I had imprinted on her all her feelings for Harry weren't there anymore. That night when I saw your mom in his arms I just lost it. I was in such rage that when I phased I sort of zoned out and the only thing I could focus on was the fact that she had betrayed me. When I phased back she was dead and both me and Harry were devastated, he swore he would avenge her death by challenging me to a fight to the death. When I came home that night and saw you I knew I could never tell you or your sister what happened, so I made up that story about the car accident. The next day we met at a clearing, Harry was there along with Sue, who decided to stand by him. A few minutes into the fight and I had already beaten Harry to a pulp. I was about to lunge at him when I heard Sue screaming 'Murderer!' and a gun go off and then an intense pressure on my spine and then it all went black. I woke in the hospital a few days later, that's when the doctors told me I was paralyzed." Billy looked at Jake with tears in his eyes. "Jake, I'm so sorry. I should have told you." Jake sat slouched in the chair, crying. For a long while we all just sat there trying to make sense of what just happened.

Jake was the first to break the silence. "Dad, I'm sorry. I forgive you."

Billy smiled weakly. "Thanks Jake," he said.

Jake squeezed my hand once and got up from the table. I wasn't sure what he was during until he walked around the table and bent down to hug Billy. They embraced for what seemed like forever, and I couldn't help but marvel at how Jake had been able to overcome his anger and give his father the forgiveness that Billy needed. I then wondered how well Billy would take the news that Jake and I had to give him. Would it help more, or hinder? Almost as if Jake could read my mind, he ended their embrace and came back to sit next to me. He looked at me significantly and grabbed my hand again.

"Dad, now, Bella and I have some news for you," Jake said with a grin.

Billy just simply looked confused and said, "Um…okay…."

Jake looked at me to explain, but I had no idea what to say or how to say it, so I just shook my head. He chuckled and said, "Fine, I guess I'll be the one. Dad, Bella's pregnant. And we're keeping the baby. Don't be mad, we didn't plan this; it just sorta happened."

Billy sat still for a moment, digesting the information. Just as Jake and I were beginning to worry, Billy's mouth seemed to explode in a huge grin. He laughed aloud and said, "Aww, how could I be mad at you two? Congrats! This is exciting stuff, huh? I can't believe I'm going to be a grandpa. Does Charlie know?"

"Yeah, he does. Renee does too," I replied.

Billy kept smiling. "Wow. This is really something. I've got to call Charlie." And with that, he wheeled himself into the living room to talk to Charlie and Renee, leaving me and Jake alone in the kitchen.

I turned to Jake and said, "Well, your dad took that surprisingly well."

Jake kissed me with a smile and said, "Yeah, he did."

After that, the weeks and months rushed by in a blur. Aiden came, as promised, to visit in Forks. Jake was surprisingly okay with Aiden's visit. I expected there to be some tension, but they both handled it better than I could have imagined. Things got even better when Leah imprinted on Aiden, to everyone's surprise. It looked like Aiden was going to be hanging around much longer than originally planned. At first, I was hesitant to tell Aiden about the baby, but I decided to tell him because my baby bump was starting to show anyway. His response was...unexpected, to say the least. He was almost giddy with excitement. I wish the kids at school were as supportive. Most were, like Mike, Ben, and Angela, but Jessica had become oddly hostile. It was almost as if she was jealous...but regardless, we weren't on speaking terms anymore.

Besides the...hostilities at school, life was going better than I could've ever hoped. I had so much support from Jake and my parents. Besides my family and close friends, I had help and support from a group of people that made my life truly special: The Cullens. They had helped in the last few months so much that it quickly became almost nothing if Jake and I visited for an afternoon. They treated us as family, and we had great times together. While we were over there, everyone was always careful not to mention a certain someone, but anyone with a heart could still feel the occasional and very tangible wave of sadness whenever someone slipped up and wandered dangerously close to Edward's name. With Jake in my life, I was somewhat over Edward in a way, but nonetheless, I had still lost an amazing friend.

One day, Jake and I had headed over to the Cullens' for Alice's "birthday" celebration. We had totally given up on getting her a gift; what could you possibly give her that she didn't already have? So instead, Jake and I decided to give her a card with one of my ultrasound pictures in it. I had a feeling that she, as long as the others would appreciate this sentimental gift more than anything that could be bought. After the familiar drive down the winding path, Jake parked right in front of the house. He walked over to open my door for me and help me out of my truck. I took his hand after grabbing Alice's card out of the glovebox, and we made our way up to the porch. Before we could knock, the door swung open and Alice pulled me into her arms.

"Oh, Bella! I absolutely love it!! Thanks so much! It was really thoughtful of you!" At first, I had no idea what Alice was talking about, but then I remembered her abilities and realized that she would've seen me putting her card together. I blushed deeply at her enthusiasm.

"No problem, Alice. And Happy Birthday, by the way." After thoroughly greeting everyone, we all sat down in the living room and talked for a while. Then, Jasper disappeared and reappeared just a suddenly with a birthday cake with Alice's name on it. Jake and I laughed at the gesture, knowing that the cake had been added solely for the human guests. We all sang 'Happy Birthday' to Alice, and then Jake and I were served our cake. Apparently, Esme had baked it just this morning. It was surprisingly tasty, having been cooked by an immortal who hadn't eaten in decades. It was vanilla cake with chocolate mousse filling, covered with fresh strawberries. Esme was just describing her trouble hunting down ingredients when Alice gasped and sank to the floor. Instantly, Jasper had her cradled in his arms, and just as quickly, all four other vampires surrounded them. I got up and walked slowly towards the semicircle of vampires. I gazed at Alice's face and it was torn between utter shock, happiness, and disbelief. I gently touched her frozen features.

"Alice. What is it?' I whispered. She tore her gaze from Jasper's and looked at me.

"Go answer the door, Bella." Finding this strange, I waddled over to the door, stumbling twice. I reached for the handle, twisted it, and pulled the door open. There, in the doorframe, I found a face I never thought I'd see again.


	17. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

I saw the face that I had always dreamed about seeing again; the person I had longed for, for so long. Edward was standing in the doorway, his body stiff in shock; his eyes wide with horror. For what seemed like forever, we just stood there looking at each other. He looked exactly the same, frozen for forever at seventeen. But I had noticed his eyes were blood red. He was the first to break the silence.

"Bella...." He said slowly in disbelief.

"Edward." The old familiar pain tore through my chest as I pronounced his name. I think what frightened me the most was the color of his eyes. They were wild with hunger and his irises were as red as rubies. I knew that he had been preying on humans again. Jake quickly got up from the couch and rushed to my side, putting his arms around me defensively.

"What do you want?" Jake demanded coldly.

"I came to…" Edward began, peering at me, but he stopped when he caught sight of my stomach. He looked back up and looked at me then to Jake, his face falling in realization. He quickly straightened his posture, recomposing himself. Alice came running from behind me into Edwards's arms, and the two embraced for a long while. I knew how much Alice had missed Edward. The brother-sister love they shared would be obvious to anyone. After they parted, he assumed his cool composure. The rest of the Cullen family just stared at him, slightly crouched in a defensive stance, as if they did not believe it was him.

"Edward," Carlisle said, advancing towards him. "I thought you were dead, we all did."

"I can show you better than I can explain," Edward started. We all settled back into the living room, sitting down on couch. Jake kept his arms around me, still glaring at Edward.

"I need you all to join hands," Edward announced. We looked at one another, confused. "Trust me," he said. We all stood. Edward extended his hand towards me as we all held hands. I felt his cool hand touch mine and instantly my mind was filled with those sweet memories that seemed to have taken place ages ago. At that one casual touch of our hands, a faint remnant of the electricity between us tingled down my spine and I knew that he could feel it too. Aware of the blazing hot hand holding the other of mine, I pushed away all thoughts of Edward and pretended that nothing had happened.

"Close your eyes," he requested. Nothing at all could've prepared us for what had happened the instant that everyone's eyes were closed. Suddenly we were in the Amazon. "Now you can see my memories from my point of view; all of them," Edward explained. His voice became distant and dream-like, and after a while I realized it was his thoughts that ran through his head as he wandered through the jungle.

(EPOV)

Why couldn't I just make up my mind? Staying away from Bella is the best thing for her. She doesn't need to be around us; to be around me. I'm a monster. I don't deserve to have family or friends, and I especially don't deserve love. My love. My Bella. God, I miss her. I miss her smile, her laugh, the way she makes me feel. I miss her blush and the way her heartbeat would quicken with every single touch. Then her scent. My God her scent. I would love to get lost in her smell just one more time. To just breathe her in and have her near me….

A noise from the east pulled me out of my wonderful but painful thoughts. Was it someone running?

I immediately took off to see who this could be, and the closer I got, the more it starts coming to me. I know who this is. The scent is all too familiar. And when I heard thoughts of "Edward, where the hell are you?" it came to me. They'd sent Rosalie to the rescue.

"Finally. I've found you," she said with a huff.

"Look Rose, tell everyone that I'm sorry, but I'm not leaving to live with you guys, not yet."

"No one sent me here, you idiot. I came on my own."

I was trying to read her thoughts, but all I got was the Elmo's World song. That told me something must be going on; something big.

"Okay, Rose. Why are you here?" She'd better tell me too.

"What? I can't come see my favorite brother to see how he's doing?" She told me this with a wink and a look that she used to give me centuries ago before she'd met Emmett. Rosalie had come to see if I was alright. And she wasn't leaving until she saw me; all of me.

"Look, Rosalie how many times do I have to tell you? I'm not interested." It was then that I noticed that she came to my side, and started to whisper in my ear.

"Edward, I love you and you love me, so how about you stop playing around so we can have some fun."

I just couldn't do it anymore. This girl had gone too far. So with that, I pushed her away. (Maybe a little too hard but I didn't care. She deserved it.) But that's when I realized what she was wearing. A black mini skirt with a blue v-neck fitted t-shirt and blue 'hooker' heels to match. She saw me looking and just smiled.

"I guess you've noticed what I'm wearing, huh? Yeah, well I know you like the color blue so I thought I would wear it for you."

A low growl ripped from my throat and I walked slowly toward her with my fists clenched. "The only person that can wear that color for me is my love, Bella, you selfish whore. And I can't wait to find out what Emmett will do when he finds out." At this point I was furious. How could she even think I would find her appealing just because she wearing the color blue. My Bella's blue. Bella…. I should just go back to Forks to be with her. Who cares if I put her in danger, I know she doesn't.

Yeah, I should just leave to be with her. But again, I was pulled out of my thoughts by Rosalie's.

"_It's not like he'll ever see her again…..and Emmett will never leave me."_

But she didn't know I was already planning to leave, to go see Bella, and beg for her to take me back.

"How do you know that, Rose? How do you know that I'm not about to go back right now to be with Bella?" I noticed that when I said I was going back to Bella, Rosalie took a step back with a look of shock on her face. Then all I could hear was her thinking about Elmo's World.

"What don't you want me to hear?"

"How could you go back to your precious Bella, if she's dead?" Rosalie sneered.

"What?!?"

"Your so called 'love' killed herself. Alice saw a vision of her jumping off of a cliff. Then she was gone. The poor human was probably devastated after you left. Silly little girl."

I could see right through Rosalie's face and her thoughts, so I knew that she was telling the truth. But there was still the feeling I had that made me think otherwise. It just felt like Bella's presence was still here on this earth, but to make sure, I took out my phone and called Alice.

While pacing back and forth, waiting for Alice to pick up, I was getting a little pissed because Rosalie was still here. But before I could say anything, I heard Alice pick up.

"Edward." She sounded extremely worried.

"Alice, tell me what Rosalie is talking about NOW!!" She hesitated for a couple of seconds, and then I heard her sigh and she continued.

"Um, Edward, I saw Bella jump off of a cliff, and then she was gone."

"What do you mean gone?"

"Edward… Bella's dead." The first time I didn't believe it, and that feeling was still there, but this time, it was different.

"How do you know? I mean, your visions aren't always accurate. Maybe she-" Alice cut me off before I was finished denying the situation.

"Edward, I don't see her anymore, okay? I'm sorry, I really am, but….she's gone."

My knees buckled beneath me and the phone fell out of my hand and to the ground. I could still hear Alice from the headset, but I just wanted to be alone now more than ever. But then Rosalie had to come over and put her hand on my shoulder. Wrong move, Rose.

I let out a growl then twisted Rose's hand off and threw it deep in the Amazon.

"Don't you ever touch me!" I screamed at her. Rosalie then left with a huff and ran off to find her hand.

What was I going to do now? There's no point for me to live. No point for my existence. Without Bella, what was I going to do with myself? She was the only thing in this world that brought me happiness (besides my family). She was the only thing that brought me joy. Without her, I was nothing. I had nothing to live for. Or should I say no one? There was no one here to keep me alive, so what was the point. I'd resolved to just let go.

I got up from my current spot from the ground and started pacing, thinking of ways to die. Then, it all came to me. There were a certain group of royal vampires who would get rid of any problem when it came to humans discovering the existence of the vampire world. All I had to do was be that problem, and I was certain they would get rid of me.

I was too engrossed in planning my demise to hear or see Rosalie running at me. Next thing I knew, she had tackled me to the ground.

"Where do you think you're going?" She demanded. I flipped her off me, and tried to block her dirty thoughts out of my mind.

"I'm going to complete my death wish."

"What?" she asked dumbfounded.

"It shouldn't be that hard to figure out, Rose. Bella is gone which means that there is no point for me to be here."

"And how exactly do you plan on dying, Edward?" She tried to be mad and angry but I could hear the sadness in her voice.

"I just plan on visiting a certain royal family." I knew that once I'd said that, she'd know where I was off to.

"Edward, you're stupid." _He doesn't know what he's missing. _And with that thought, she was gone. And I was off to my own destination.

"Hello, welcome to International Airlines! How may I help you?" Hmm, if this woman weren't so ugly, she'd almost remind me of Bella. But I stopped insulting the woman long enough to ask, "Are there any one way tickets to Italy?"

BPOV:

He let go of my hand and suddenly the only thing I saw was the inside of my eyelids. We all opened our eyes in amazement. When we all settled back into our places on the couch, there was one question that was plaguing us all.

"How?" we all asked at the same time.

"I can explain," Edward started again. "When Rosalie told me that Bella went suicidal, I simply couldn't bare the pain of knowing I was in a world where she wasn't. Like Adam loved Eve, he ate the forbidden fruit after Eve had just so he wouldn't lose her. So I went to the Volturi, and requested that I be disposed of, and when they refused to do so, I tried to expose myself in the daylight. They quickly captured me, but instead of killing me they asked me to join them. I wanted to refuse but strangely, I found myself accepting their invitation. Aro took me under his wing, showing me how to use my gift in ways I could never have imagined, and since I was a member of the Volturi, I had to adopt their customs like preying on humans for example. I again wanted to refuse but found myself pouncing on the next human that crossed my path. After a while it became easier and easier to live without you." Edward was staring boldly into my eyes, as if we were the only two people in the room. "I was sent here to check up on you guys, after we saw the news about the murder in Jacksonville and traced it back to Forks. We suspected it might have been the work of a newborn. Do you all have any idea who it could be?" He tore his eyes away from mine to look at everyone. Their eyes all shifted to Jacob, giving him away.

"It was me," Jake said simply. Edward rolled his eyes in disgust, which received a growl from Jacob. Carlisle opened his mouth to say something when Edward interjected.

"I know you want me to stay". Carlisle simply nodded his head confirming Edward's statement.

"But I don't think they'll let me leave". Carlisle again nodded with understanding.

"How long will you be able to stay?" Carlisle asked.

"I am scheduled to return in three days." Edward looked at me when he said this, and I detected a hint of sadness in his voice.

"You're always welcome here, you know that," Carlisle said.

"I know, thanks." After a few minutes of awkward silence, Edward finally broke the ice.

"Where's Rosalie?" We all looked at each other, and laughed.

"It has been a long time," Emmett said, chuckling.

We all sat around the couch, talking about everything that had happened since his departure, ranging from the saddest of moments to the most hilarious. Afterwards, while I was helping clean up, Edward came to me and took me aside.

"I need to talk to you," He said, his voice dripping with agony.

"Sure, okay," was all I could reply.

"Alone, if you don't mind," he whispered.

"Okay." We went into the guest bedroom. I sat down on the bed while Edward stood on the opposite side of the room.

"You can sit down if you want," I said, patting the spot next to me.

"Bella, I can hardly stand to be in the same room as you. You have to understand, I haven't been alone with a human in a year, at least not in these circumstances." I nodded, understanding.

"So what did you want to talk to me about?"

"When I told Carlisle that the Volturi wouldn't allow me to leave, I wasn't exactly telling the truth. I was going to come back and stay but..."

"What do you mean?" I asked, confused about why he would lie.

"You know, I'd always hoped you were alive," he said, coming closer, staring at me with his eyes wild with hunger and need, but I could tell it wasn't just for my blood. "But today when I saw you with him I just..." He looked down, hiding his emotions.

"You just…what?" I asked, getting up from the bed and walking towards him.

"Please, don't come any closer," Edward said sternly. And yet, he inched closer as if he couldn't help it.

"Edward," I said slowly. "I understand why you left, please don't let me get in the way of you coming back home." By this time, we were inches away from each other.

He reached over a put in cool hand on my face, "Bella I still..." he began, but then stopped. "Oh no," he said suddenly. And then Jake walked in. He saw Edward and I so close to each other and an expression of the deepest shock found its way onto his face."What are you two doing?"


	18. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

I saw Edward close his eyes for a moment in frustration as he clenched his teeth before removing his hands from my face slowly.

"Jake," I warned, but it was too late; Jake was already running towards Edward full force and before I knew it, had tackled him to the floor. Edward quickly reacted, pushing Jake off of him, and crouched in a defensive position. Jake got up swiftly coming towards him again when I stepped in between the two.

"Jake, I can explain," I said placing my hands on his shoulders, but he roughly shrugged them off. "He came to explain why he couldn't stay." I said simply. I placed my hands on either side of his face, trying to calm him. "I love _you, _remember that," I whispered to him. I heard Edward sigh and walk out the room. Jake hugged me softly, sighing into my shoulder.

"I don't like him here," Jake said, still a little angry.

"I know, but this is his home. He has the right to be here."

"I know," he said stubbornly.

"Come on," I said, grabbing his hand and pulling him toward the door. "Let's go back into the living room."

"Okay," he said, kissing me softly. We went back into the living room and found everyone staring at us as if waiting for a verdict.

"We're fine," Jake said. Everyone seemed to sigh in relief.

"Where's Edward?" I asked, looking around the room for him.

"He said he needed to get some air." Carlisle said.

"Oh," I replied simply, dismissing the subject. Jake and I sat down on the couch again, but we could only take the awkward silence for so long. I was finally able to catch Jake's eyes and silently communicate that I was ready to leave. He seemed even more ready than I was. We stood up and said our good-byes and promised to come back to visit soon. On our way home, my mind was bursting with confusion. I desperately needed time alone to think and pull it together. Maybe later I could escape from Jake and Charlie….

**EPOV:**

I ran blindly, not stopping for anything, to the meadow...our meadow. I didn't know what came over me; I had no right to touch her the way I did. I had no right to want her. I gave up that right when I left her broken and confused. I guess I should have expected she would move on. I knew perfectly well what the guys thought of her at school and especially Jacob. And yet, when I felt her warm smooth skin on my hand, all the progress I'd made trying to forget her seemed to disappear when her eyes locked with mine. I lay in the grass once I got to the meadow, trying to imagine her there with me. I closed my eyes and there she was, so delicate and beautiful, just as I had remembered her.

"Edward?" I heard someone call. That voice was so familiar, I thought. It sounded like…like...no.... It couldn't be, I thought to myself. My imagination must be pairing a voice to my beautiful delusion. I kept my eyes closed, not wanting to part from the illusion just yet.

"Edward," The voice said slowly again. I opened my eyes to find Bella standing over me.

"How did you know I was here?" I asked.

"I guess you're not the only one who can read my minds," she said smiling. At the sight of her smile, I absolutely melted. I scrambled to regain my cool composure and cleared my throat.

"What do you want?" I asked coldly. She seemed taken aback by my sudden change in tone.

"Why did you leave just now?" she asked. I had a feeling that she already knew the answer.

"I…I don't know," I lied miserably.

The look on face told me that she didn't buy it, not even for a second. Her eyes were locked on mine, and under the intensity of her gaze, I decided to give up my phony façade.

"I love you too much, to see you with him, with any man," I confessed in complete anguish and embarrassment.

"Edward," she said slowly, just as she used to. I closed my eyes and relished the sweet sound of her voice, knowing that her next words wouldn't be as nice. She didn't deserve me suddenly rushing into her life again.

"I thought you'd forgotten about me." She said simply, looking down, hiding the tears that had started to swell in her eyes.

"Bella, my love. I left because I needed you to have a chance to lead a normal life. You couldn't have had that if I stayed. Being with me, you were also in a considerable amount of danger that I couldn't protect you from."

"Well, danger had its own way of finding me." Something inside me ached when she said this.

"What happened?" I asked.

"Phil, my mom's husband, well ex-husband now, I guess…he tried to rape me and when I escaped, he caught me again and he..." Bella trailed off, as if there weren't sufficient words to describe what he had done.

"He what?" I asked, barely able to contain my rage.

She slowly pushed back her shirt to reveal a scar on her chest. It wasn't just a scar, it seemed to be someone's initial and then I realized what she meant. He had cut his initials on her chest where her heart was.

"And I thought Jake was territorial," she kidded, trying to lighten the mood. I didn't respond, I just continued to stare at her scar imagining what she must have went through.

"I...I'm sorry" I barely muttered.

"It's not your fault; you couldn't have known this would happen."

" What happened to him? Is he still out there?" I asked, mortified at the thought of him still lurking about preying on innocent people.

"Jake...um…Jake...took care of it," she muttered so low that even I strained to hear it.

"You mean he…" I started, expecting her to finish the sentence.

"Yes," she replied simply, looking down.

"I can't help feeling like this is my fault somehow. But I think I can help you," I said.

"How?" She asked with obvious doubt.

"Come here," I told her. She hesitated for a moment, so I stood up, taking the initiative, and walked towards her. I heard her gasp in fear when I placed my hands on her shoulders. I gently pulled her towards me, and couldn't help taking in her scent. I could already feel the venom dripping from my teeth. Her shirt was still pushed aside, revealing her scar. She stood there frozen like a statute as I bent down slowly and kissed her scar. She gasped again and pushed me away from her, appalled.

"I'm sorry, I was just trying to help."

"How was that help-..." she started to yell. But she looked down to discover the scar had vanished. She looked at me in shock.

"But, how?"

"Just something I learned while I was away."

Tears began to form in her eyes. She hugged me gently, burying her head into my shoulder. I held her closer, knowing that it would probably never happen again.

"Thank you so much," she said, looking up at me.

"It was the least I could do," I replied. And it truly was the very least I could do after inflicting so much pain on her. She smiled, continuing to hug me.

"Bella, I still love you," I confessed to her, for the second time. Her smile faded as she let go of me and backed away.

"Edward," she said slowly. "I love Jake and we have a child to raise together." Whatever form of life that was somehow still harbored within me died when she said this. So that was it. She had finally moved on like I had prayed she wouldn't, even though Jacob had always been the healthiest choice for Bella.

"I know," I replied pathetically. "And that's why I can't stay. Goodbye, Bella." I turned on the spot and darted past her and into the trees. The pain was unbearable, and I thought that I would go crazy with agony. All of this, and couldn't help but wonder when I would see her next.

A/N: Breathe Jacob fans the nightmare is over Edward is gone. Well, for now anyways. Thanks for all the great reviews. We need at least 10 reviews for the next chapter.


	19. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

BPOV: 

"Bella, Jake's here! Come on, you're gonna be late for your appointment," Charlie yelled from the stairs. I sighed and heaved myself out of my desk chair with great effort. At 8 months, it was really getting hard for me to move around. Not only was I physically exhausted, but emotionally, I was drained too. The whole incident in the meadow brought back some of my old feelings for Edward, and despite the fact that those dim memories could never compare to what Jake and I had, I couldn't help but imagine what it would've been like if Edward had never left. Edward had been playing a constant role in my thoughts, but then again, so had Jake. Another impatient call from Charlie shook me out of my thoughts and so I crossed my room and turned off the lights on my way out. I waddled down the stairs to see Jake waiting at the bottom. He grinned and took my hand, helping me down from the last step.

"Hey, are you feeling okay?" Jake asked, concerned.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He had asked me that question everyday since my 4th month. We said goodbye to Charlie and made our way out of the house and into the car. It seemed like Jake had something on his mind and it wasn't until we were five minutes into the trip that he finally said something.

"So...Bella... I've been wondering..." Jake stopped, hesitating.  
"What is it, Jake," I said, hoping to encourage him.

"Bella, I was wondering when you were going to move in with me," he said, staring boldly into my eyes. I knew this was coming, it had been a pressing issue since we'd decided to get married. It wasn't that I didnt want to start my life with Jake, I just had always imagined us finding our own place. I loved Billy, but as newly weds, Jake and I would need our privacy and a chance to find our own way in the world.

"Jake, can we talk about this later?" I said, avoiding his gaze. I heard him sigh in irritation.

"Okay," He said in defeat, as we pulled up to the doctors office. We sat in the waiting room in a particularly uncomfortable silence. Jake, sitting straight up in an obviously tense position, began to tap his foot in frustration. Sensing the need to make the first move of reconciliation, I grabbed Jake's hand and began to trace circles in his palm. He relaxed and took my hand in his.

"Bella," he began to say softly when the doctor came into the waiting room.

"Isabella Swan," called a middle age woman. We got up and made our way into the cold office.

"So, Isabella how are feeling?" She asked sweetly as I sat down.

"I've been better," I kidded. She laughed lightly as she smeered a cold liquid jelly on my stomach.

"So this is your last ultra-sound. You excited?" She asked, as she began to perform the ultra-sound.

"Very," Jake interjected happily. We looked on the screen, seeing our little baby, but then I saw something that sent panic and anxiety coursing through my body.

"Why does my baby have three feet?" I shrieked, alarmed.

"What?" She asked, confused as she looked at the screen. She moved the ultrasound transducer across my stomach, searching for the cause of my distress.

"Oh! I see the problem," she said and laughed. "It seems like you're having twins; one must have been hiding behind the other."

Disbelief was all I felt. I could just vaguely still feel Jacob's hand around mine, but time seemed to stand still as I struggled to come to terms with this information. Twins? How was that even possible? But as I looked at the monitor, the evidence of two lives was indisputable. There were now four feet visible. Four tiny hands. Two heads. I turned to look up at Jake to try and gauge his reaction. The most dominant emotions etched onto his face were wonder and above that, love. Under those two, only traces of fear, shock, and worry lingered, but it was clear that Jacob's heart had grown two-fold within the time span of 30 seconds to accomodate the love of not one baby, but two babies. As his eyes met mine, it was impossible to hold onto my previous feelings. As I looked into his eyes, I only saw our love and the possibilities. We smiled, thanked the ultrasound technician and after I got cleaned up, we left.

On our way home, Jake absolutely couldn't stop smiling. About half-way to Charlie's house, he took my hand in his and kissed it.

"Are you excited, Bells? Twins... That's pretty...wow."

I laughed softly at his expression. "Of course I'm excited, Jake. I'm just nervous, too. I mean, twins are double the cost and double the responsibility."

His smiled faded just the tiniest bit. "Yeah, I was thinking about that too, but it will turn out all right. Trust me."

And I did.

Back in Charlie's driveway, Jacob kissed me goodbye and apologized for having to leave. I assured him I wasn't upset and headed inside, where I was instantly greeted by Charlie.

"Hey bella. How'd it go?"

"It was...great. We got a nice surprise."

Charlie looked nervous. "Well, what? What is it, Bells?"

I couldn't think of any other way than to just come right out with it. "Dad, Jake and I found out that we're actually having twins."

His face showed about ten emotions before finally settling on surprised. "Wow. That's great, kiddo. Congrats," he whispered as he pulled me into a warm embrace, which was unusual behavior for Charlie. Perhaps he was more emotional about this pregnancvy than he let on. He pulled away and grabbed an envelope off of the counter.

"Here," he said. "You got some mail today."

I took the envelope and he walked into the living room. There was no return adress, but I instantly recognized the elegant handwriting. Wanting privacy, I climbed the stairs as quickly and as carefully as I possibly could. I strode into my bedroom and shut the door. Impatient, I ripped open the envelope and read the note:

_Dear Bella,_

I know that we haven't spoken since the incident at our meadow, but you must know that I've wanted to. So many times I dreamt of coming to you, but I knew I would only cause you more confusion and heartache. Bella, I told myself over and over that this was best for you, that Jacob was always the better choice. I knew all along that the best alternative for you would be that you didn't feel as strongly for me, so you could get over me and move on. But I forced you into that alternative by taking myself out of your world, and it very nearly killed us both. And now it seems that it is I who can't seem to part from you. It has become unbearable. I can't tell you what it's like being a away from you, there aren't words. But maybe, one day, face to face, I will be able to tell you how much I've loved you since before I really knew what love was. And, how much I'll love you for the rest of my existence.  


_Yours Always,  
Edward _


End file.
